GIFT   OF 
EVGENE  MEYER,JR. 


LIFE 


OP 


DEWITT      CLINTON 


BY 


JAMES    RENWICK,    LL.D., 

PROFESSOR    OP    NATURAL   EXPERIMENTAL   PHILOSOPHY   AND 
CHEMISTRY    IN   COLUMBIA   COLLEGE 


N  E  W- Y  O  R  K : 
PUBLISHED  BY  HARPER  &  BROTHERS, 

NO.  82  CLIFF-STREET. 


C6-5" 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1840,  \r 

HARPER  &  BROTHERS, 
*n  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  Southern  District  of  New  York 


PREFACE. 


THE  Biography  of  Dewitt  Clinton,  which  is  now 
submitted  to  the  public,  was  originally  intended  to 
have  been  a  mere  sketch,  comprised  within  less 
than  a  third  of  its  present  extent.  The  subject, 
however,  was  found  to  present  itself  in  so  many 
new  and  important  points  of  view,  that  it  appear 
ed  probable  that  so  meager  an  outline  would  have 
given  but  little  satisfaction  to  the  reader.  In  this 
stage  of  the  composition,  the  author  was  tendered 
the  use  of  the  manuscript  papers  of  the  subject  of 
the  biography,  and  various  other  materials,  by  the 
kindness  of  Charles  A.  Clinton,  the  worthy  and 
estimable  son  of  so  distinguished  a  father.  To 
this  gentleman  thanks  are  gratefully  returned  for 
this  and  various  other  assistance  which  he  has  ren 
dered  the  author.  Thus,  while  no  undue  influence 
has  been  exerted  by  any  of  the  relatives  or  friends 
of  the  departed  statesman,  the  work  will  have  the 
merit,  if  it  possess  no  other,  of  being  drawn  from 
the  most  authentic  sources. 

Columbia  College,  June,  1840. 

346258 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Paga 

Introduction. — Memoir  of  the  Family  of  Clin 
ton  13 

CHAPTER  II. 

Birth  of  Dewitt  Clinton. — His  early  Educa 
tion. — He  studies  at  the  Kingston  Acade 
my. — He  is  present  at  the  Evacuation  of 
New-York. — He  enters  Columbia  College. 
— Account  of  the  Professors  of  that  Insti 
tution. — Clinton  distinguishes  himself  as 
a  Scholar,  and  graduates  with  the  highest 
honours 25 

CHAPTER  HI. 

Clinton  enters  upon  the  Study  of  the  Law, 
and  is  admitted  to  its  Practice. — He  is  ap 
pointed  Private  Secretary  to  his  Uncle  the 
Governor. — His  Career  as  a  Political  Wri 
ter. — He  retires  to  Private  Life,  and  applies 
himself  to  Scientific  Pursuits. — He  Mar 
ries. — Character  of  his  Wife  .  .  .  >;  •  37 


IV  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Page 

State  of  Parties  under  the  Administration  of 
Mams. — Clinton  is  elected  a  Member  of 
Assembly. — He  is  chosen  Senator  of  the 
State. — He  becomes  a  Member  of  the  Coun 
cil  of  Appointment. — Contest  in  respect  to 
the  Powers  of  that  Council. — State  Conven 
tion. — His  Victory  over  Jay. — He  is  elected 
a  Senator  of  the  United  States,  where  he 
is  opposed  to  Gouverneur  Morris. — Debate 
on  the  Mississippi  Question.  —  Clinton's 
Speech  on  that  occasion. — He  acquires  a 
high  Reputation  as  a  Statesman  ....  49 

CHAPTER  V. 

Clinton  is  appointed  Mayor  of  the  City  of 
New-York. — Important  Duties  of  that  Of 
fice. — His  successive  Reappointments  and 
Removals. — Fluctuations  of  Party. — Caus 
es  of  his  Decline  in  Popularity.  —  His 
great  Ability  as  a  Criminal  Judge. — The 
College  Riot. — His  Energy  as  Head  of  the 
Police. — Threatened  Riots  prevented  by  his 
Measures  of  Precaution. — Aggressions  of 
British  Cruisers  in  the  Waters  of  New- 
York. — Breaches  of  Neutrality  attempted 
by  the  French. — Clinton's  Acts  on  these 
Occasions  .  . •'"'**?"  .  61 


CONTENTS.  T 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Page 

Origin  of  the  Public  School  Society  of  New- 
York. — It  is  Chartered.  —  Is  founded  on 
Private  Contributions. — Clinton's  Jlgency 
in  obtaining  them. — Gift  from  the  Corpo 
ration  of  New-York,  and  Grant  from  the 
State  Legislature. — Reflections  on  the  Sys- 
tern  of  Common  Schools. — Turnpike  from 
Poughkeepsie  to  Kingsbridge 78 

CHAPTER  VH. 

Clinton  is  elected  a  Member  of  the  State  Sen 
ate. — Incorporation  of  the  Sailor's  Snug 
Harbour. — Law  removing  the  Incapacities 
of  Roman  Catholics. — Charter  of  the  Man 
umission  Society;  of  the  Cincinnati. — 
Grant  for  an  Insane  Hospital. — Charter 
of  the  Eagle  Fire  Insurance  Company. — 
Grant  for  the  Defence  of  the  Harbour  of 
New-York. — Academy  of  Fine  Arts  In 
corporated. — Clinton  is  named  a  Director^ 
and  subsequently  President  of  the  Academy. 
— Charter  of  the  American  Fur  Company. 
— Burial  of  the  Remains  of  the  Prisoners 
in  the  Jersey  Hulk 89 


VI  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VHL 

Page 

Important  Laws  drawn  by  Clinton  while  Sen 
ator. — His  Opinions  as  a  Member  of  the 
Court  of  Errors.-— He  Receives  a  Chal 
lenge  for  words  spoken  in  Debate. — His 
Manly  and  Dignified  Conduct  on  that  Oc 
casion. — Attempt  at  Corruption  in  obtain 
ing  the  Charter  of  a  Bank 101 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Literary  and  Scientific  Pursuits  of  Clinton. 
— Historical  Society  ;  his  efforts  in  its  be~ 
half,  and  his  Mdress  on  the  History  of  the 
Five  Nations. — Literary  and  Philosophical 
Society  formed,  and  Clinton  chosen  Presi 
dent. — His  Inaugural  Discourse. — His  Dis 
covery  of  a  Native  Variety  of  Wheat,  and 
other  Contributions  to  Natural  Science  .  .114 

CHAPTER  X. 

Description  of  the  Water  Communications  of 
the  State  of  New-York. — Use  made  of 
them  by  the  Indians. — Expedition  of  Gen 
eral  Clinton  on  the  Sicsquehanna. — Views 
of  Lieutenant-Governor  C olden. — Tour  of 
Washington  to  Wood  Creek. — His  Predi 
lections  for  the  Route  to  the  Chesapeake. 
' 


CONTENTS.  Vll 

Page 

—Clinton's  liberal  Policy  in  relation  to  this 
Question 129 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Western  Limit  of  the  early  Settlements  on 
the  Mohawk. — Claims  of  Massachusetts. 
— These  Claims  are  partially  Admitted. 
— Influx  of  Emigration  from  New-Eng 
land. — Voyage  of  the  Wadsworths. — State 
Roads. — Western  Inland  Lock  Navigation 
Company. — Its  slow  Progress  and  unsuc 
cessful  Result.  —  Communication  between 
the  Hudson  and  Lake  Champlain. — Nor 
thern  Canal 141 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Earliest  Legislation  of  the  State  of  New- 
York  in  relation  to  Canals. — Petition  of 
Colles. — Report  of  Jeffrey  Smith. — Mes 
sages  of  George  Clinton. — Resolution  of 
Judge  Forman. — Survey  made  ly  Geddes, 
who  first  demonstrated  the  Practicability 
of  a  Route  to  Lake  Erie. — Essays  of  Jesse 
Hawley.  —  Resolution  of  Judge  Platt. — 
Appointment  of  a  Board  of  Commissioners, 
of  which  Clinton  is  one. — Character  of 
Morris,  the  senior  Commissioner. — Notice 

of  the  other  Commissioners 153 

B 


Vlll  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

Pag« 

The  Canal  Commissioners  undertake  to  ex 
amine  the  Route. — Clinton  and  others  pro 
ceed  by  Water  from  Schenectady. — Their 
Progress  to  Geneva,  after  a  Deviation  to 
Oswego. — Journey  by  Land  to  Niagara, 
and  return  to  Albany  by  the  way  of  Ithaca. 
— Meetings  of  the  Commissioners  at  Utica 
and  Chippeway. — Diversity  of  Opinion  in 
the  Board. — Opinion  of  Morris. — Clinton's 
Views  prevail  in  the  Board. — Report  drawn 
up  by  Mr.  Morris. — Examination  of  its 
Features  and  Consequences 167 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Origin  and  Growth  of  the  Democratic  Party. 
— Its  Triumph  in  the  Election  of  Jefferson. 
— George  Clinton  chosen  Vice-President  in 
the  place  of  Burr. — His  Pretensions  to  be 
the  Successor  of  Jefferson. — He  is  passed 
over. — Jealousy  of  Virginia.- — Jill  Jiid  to 
the  New-York  Canals  is  refused. — Dewitt 
Clinton  is  named  as  a  Candidate  for  the 
Presidency. — Examination  of  his  Course 
in  relation  to  the  War  ,  182 


CONTENTS.  IX 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Pag« 

Progress  of  the  Canal  Policy  interrupted  by 
the  War. — Clinton  tenders  his  Military 
Services  to  Governor  Tompkins. — His  Re 
port  on  the  Defence  of  the  City  of  New- 
Yor/c. — Measures  of  the  Corporation,  and 
of  the  State  and  General  Governments,  in 
consequence. — Clinton  is  removed  from  his 
Office  of  Mayor. — He  renews  the  Consid 
eration  of  the  Canal  Question. — Meeting 
on  that  Subject  in  New-York. — Clinton 
draws  the  Memorial  of  that  Meeting. — Ex 
amination  of  the  Contents,  and  Effects  of 
that  Memorial 198 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Memorial  is  presented  to  the  Legislature. — 
Final  Report  of  the  Old  Board  of  Com- 
missioners. — Law  to  provide  for  the  Im 
provement  of  the  Internal  Navigation  of 
the  State. — The  New  Board  of  Commis 
sioners  enter  upon  their  duties. — Their  Re 
port. —  Vast  amount  of  field-work  perform- 
ed  under  their  direction. — Scheme  of  Fi 
nance. — Law  of  Congress  for  promoting 
Internal  Improvements. — Its  Rejection  by 
President  Madison  as  unconstitutional. — 
Modifications  rendered  necessary  in  the 


X  CONTENTS. 

Fag» 

Scheme  of  Finance.-— The  Bill  to  authorize 
the  construction  of  the  Canal  becomes  a 
Law. — Opposition  of  the  City  Delegation. 
— The  Canal  Policy  made  by  them  a  party 
question 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

Clinton  is  elected  Governor  of  the  State  of 
New-York. — Apparent  Calm  in  Party  Feel 
ings. — Causes  of  renewed  Party  Violence, 
— Tompkins  is  held  up  as  a  Candidate  in 
opposition  to  him. — Clinton's  Re-election* 
— Farther  increase  of  Party  Violence. — 
Interference  of  the  General  Government. — 
Personal  Hostility  added  to  Feelings  of 
Party. — Important  Measures  recommend 
ed  by  Clinton  and  carried  in  the  Legis 
lature. — Character  of  his  Speeches  to  the 
Legislature 247 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Objections  to  the  old  Constitution  of  the  State. 
— Jill  Parties  concur  in  a  desire  for  its 
Amendment. — Bill  calling  a  Convention 
returned  by  the  Council  of  Revision.  — 
Clinton's  Opinions  on  the  subject. — -A  Law 
is  passed  by  which  the  call  of  a  Convention 
is  submitted  to  a  popular  vote. —Alterations 
-made  in  the  old  Constitution. — Clinton's 


CONTENTS.  XI 

Page 

term  of  Office  is  abridged. — He  declines 
to  be  a  Candidate  for  re-election. — Accident 
to  his  leg. — His  first  Wife  dies. — He  visits 
the  States  of  Jersey  and  Ohio.-— He  visits 
Pennsylvania. — He  is  examined  before  a 
Committee  of  the  Legislature. — He  is  re 
moved  from  his  Office  of  Canal  Commis 
sioner. — Public  Indignation  in  Consequence. 
— Attempt  of  the  General  Government  to 
tax  Vessels  navigating  the  Canal. — Clinton 
is  nominated  by  the  Republican  Convention 
at  Utica,  and  again  elected  Governor. — He 
marries  his  second  Wife 247 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

Success  of  the  Canal  Policy.  —  Silver  Vases 
are  presented  to  Clinton  by  the  Merchants 
of  New-  York. — -He  is  invited  by  Mr.  Adams 
to  serve  as  Minister  to  Great  Britain,  and 
declines. — Great  Celebration  of  the  opening 
of  the  Canal. — New  and  important  Public 
Works  recommended  by  Clinton. — His  plan 
of  a  Board  of  Public  Works — Antimasonic 
Excitement.— -Coalition  to  defeat  Clinton's 
election  as  Governor. — He  is,  notwithstand 
ing,  re-elected 266 


Xll  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XX. 

Clinton's  views  of  Religious  Worship. — His 
Services  to  the  Presbyterian  Education  and 
Bible  Societies. — His  occasional  Addresses. 
— Great  change  in  the  Relations  of  Parties. 
— Clinton  recommends  the  Road  through 
the  Southwestern  tier  of  Counties. — His 
Illness  and  Death. — Political  Reflections. 
— Description  of  Clinton's  Person,  and  Re 
marks  on  his  Character. — Illustrations  of 
the  importance  of  his  Services  in  promoting 
the  Canal  Policy  of  the  State  ....  285 


DEWITT    CLINTON. 

CHAPTER  I. 

Introduction. — Memoir  of  the  Family  of  Clinton. 

IN  undertaking  a  biography  of  Dewitt  Clinton, 
a  task  of  no  little  difficulty  is  to  be  performed. 
Few  men  have  been  more  the  object  of  virulent 
animosity  or  of  more  exalted  praise.  It  is,  there 
fore,  hardly  possible  to  obtain  any  reasonable  esti 
mate  of  his  character  and  public  services  from  the 
testimony  of  his  contemporaries ;  a  part  of  whom 
sought  to  sink  him  below  the  level  in  popular  es 
teem  of  which  he  was  certainly  worthy,  while 
others,  perhaps,  endeavoured  to  raise  him  to  a 
standing  to  which  he  was  hardly  entitled.  In 
such  conflicting  testimony,  the  truth  can  with  dif- 
6culty  be  reached. 

It  will  be  necessary,  too,  in  describing  his  ca 
reer,  to  open  anew  the  wounds  of  political  discord. 
In  the  violent  contests  between  two  great  and 
powerful  parties,  which  preceded  the  war  of  1812, 
and  in  the  continual  fluctuations  of  opinion  which 
have  since  occurred,  there  was  hardly  any  distin- 


14  'A  M  E  R  LC  A*  N   BIOGRAPHY. 

guished  individual  of  oyr  state  who  has  not  at  one* 
time  been  opposed  to  Clinton,  and  at  another  uni 
ted  with  him.  in  the  pursuit  of  the  same  political 
object;  and  of  these  many  still  survive.  There 
were  also  others,  who,  opposed  to  him  personally 
in  the  early  period  of  his  life,  continued  that  op 
position  to  the  hour  of  his  death,  and  seem  to 
have  been  guided  finally  by  no  other  principle  but 
that  of  being  found  in  the  party  where  he  was 
not ;  and  there  have  been  some  who  sunk  all  oth 
er  considerations  in  devoted  attachment  to  his  for 
tunes. 

Those  who  w^ere  so  long  his  open  enemies,  how 
ever,  prey  not  upon  the  character  of  the  dead ; 
and  those  who,  with  fair  and  manly  feelings,  sup 
ported  him  when  his  course  was  consistent  with 
their  views  of  state  and  national  policy,  and  act 
ed  against  him  without  personal  motives  when 
their  opinions  did  not  coincide  with  his,  cannot  be 
offended  by  a  narrative,  intended  to  be  impartial, 
of  his  eventful  career.     There  are  those,  however 
who  meanly  flattered  him  when  possessed  of  pow 
er,  and  as  basety  deserted  him  when  the  tide  oi 
politics  set  against  him,  to  whom  a  candid  account 
of  the  vicissitudes  of  his  political  life  must  recall 
disagreeable  reflections ;  and  there  must  be  some 
of  those  who  almost  deified  him  while  alive,  who 
may  feel  disappointed  at  the  coldness  of  the  prais 
es  which  this  history  awards  him. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  15 

The  name  and  family  of  Clinton  are  insepara 
bly  connected  with  the  history  of  the  Province  and 
State  of  New-York.  Under  the  royal  government, 
George  Clinton,  a  naval  officer  of  high  rank,  was 
for  a  time  chief-magistrate  of  the  colony.  A  sec 
ond  of  the  same  name,  the  uncle  of  the  subject 
of  our  memoir,  was  the  first  governor  of  the  state 
after  its  independence  was  declared.  This  office 
he  held  for  eighteen  years,  and  was  distinguished, 
not  only  for  a  faithful  discharge  of  the  civil  duties 
of  his  office,  but  for  a  brave  though  unsuccessful 
defence  of  the  passes  of  the  Highlands,  at  the 
head  of  the  militia  suddenly  gathered  to  oppose 
the  royal  forces. 

James  Clinton,  the  father  of  Dewitt,  was  a 
brave  and  useful  military  officer  in  the  \var  of 
1756  and  in  that  of  the  revolution ;  while  a  third 
of  the  name  of  George,  the  son  of  James  and 
brother  of  Dewitt,  represented  the  City  of  New- 
York  in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States. 

However  unimportant  we  may  justly  view  such 
pretensions  as  are  founded  on  ancestral  worth 
alone,  and  however  politic  it  may  be  in  a  repub 
lican  government  to  reject  all  claims  to  distinction 
growing  out  of  such  a  cause,  we  may  still  feel, 
and  with  propriety  gratify,  a  curiosity  as  to  the 
race  whence  our  eminent  public  servants  have 
drawn  their  descent.  In  countries  where  an  aris 
tocracy  prevails,  the  sons  often  derive  all  their  dis- 


16  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

tinction  from  the  exploits  and  virtues  of  their  sires; 
while  in  those  where  no  such  adventitious  source 
of  dignity  exists,  the  merits  of  the  descendant  re 
flect  back  honour  upon  the  memory  of  his  progen 
itors. 

The  family  which  bears  the  name  of  Clinton  is 
of  Norman  origin.  Individuals  belonging  to  it 
appear  in  the  history  of  the  Crusades,  and  figure 
in  the  chivalrous  chronicles  of  Froissart  and  Mon- 
strelet.  For  our  own  purposes,  we  need  only  go 
back  to  the  immediate  ancestor  of  the  branch 
which  settled  in  the  State  of  New-York,  who  was 
a  gentleman  of  fortune  and  influence  in  the  reign 
of  Charles  I.  A  cadet  of  the  family  of  the  Earls 
of  Lincoln,  he  espoused,  along  with  many  other 
scions  of  noble  houses,  the  royal  side  in  the  civil 
war.  On  the  failure  of  that  cause,  he  had  attain 
ed  a  sufficient  degree  of  eminence  as  its  adherent 
to  be  too  obnoxious  to  the  victors  to  hope  for  safe 
ty.  He  therefore  took  refuge  on  the  Continent. 
We  next  find  him  in  Scotland,  under  circumstan 
ces  which  lead  to  the  impression  that  he  had  ac 
companied  Charles  II.  in  the  brave  but  unfortu 
nate  effort  which  that  prince  made  to  reconquer 
England  at  the  head  of  the  Scottish  army.  Here 
he  married  a  lady  of  the  noble  house  of  Kennedy. 
After  the  disastrous  battle  of  Worcester,  he,  with 
his  wife,  sought  refuge  in  Ireland,  in  which  coun 
try  he  died,  leaving  a  son  of  the  tender  age  of  two 
years. 


DEWITT    CLINTON,  17 

James  Clinton,  the  son,  made  an  attempt,  on 
reaching  the  age  of  manhood,  to  regain  the  estate 
of  his  father,  sequestered  by  the  commonwealth 
for  his  adherence  to  the  royal  cause.  Here  he  ex 
perienced  the  ingratitude  which  disgraced  the  res 
toration  of  the  Stuarts.  The  estate  was  withheld 
on  plea  of  an  act  of  limitation,  and  no  indemnity 
was  granted  to  him.  During  his  stay  in  England 
in  presenting  his  claims,  he  wooed  and  wedded 
Elizabeth  Smith,  the  daughter  of  an  officer  in  the 
army  of  the  Parliament.  The  fortune  of  this  lady 
was  sufficient  to  establish  him  respectably  in  Ire 
land,  whither  he  returned  on  the  failure  of  his 
claim  upon  royal  gratitude. 

It  is  not  to  be  questioned,  that  the  denial  of 
what  was  no  more  than  strict  justice  must  have 
lessened,  in  a  great  degree,  the  feelings  of  loyalty 
to  kings  which  James  Clinton  may  have  derived 
from  his  parents.  His  children,  in  addition,  drew 
their  maternal  descent  from  the  stern  republicans 
who  had  doomed  a  monarch  to  the  block.  We 
therefore  find  Charles  Clinton,  his  son,  a  dissenter 
from  the  established  religion,  and  in  opposition  to 
the  ruling  party  in  Ireland. 

While  the  revolution  of  1689,  and  the  accession 
of  the  House  of  Hanover,  established  the  privile 
ges  of  Englishmen  on  a  .surer  foundation,  Ireland 
was  treated  as  a  conquered  country,  and  ruled  by 
a  small  minority  of  her  population  upon  princi- 


IS  A  M  E  R     C  A  N     BIOGRAPHY. 

pies  of  bigotry  and  intolerance.  In  order  to  es 
cape  the  annoyance  and  oppression  arising  from 
this  policy  in  the  government,  Charles  Clinton,  in 
the  40th  year  of  his  age,  resolved  to  emigrate  to 
North  America.  In  this  determination  he  was 
joined  by  a  number  of  friends  and  neighbours, 
subject  to  the  same  disqualifications,  who  cluster 
ed  around  him  as  the  leader  of  their  enterprise. 
Pennsylvania  was  the  proposed  object  of  the  voy 
age  on  wrhich  they  embarked  from  Dublin  in  May, 
1729.  From  want  of  skill  or  fidelity  in  the  mas 
ter  of  the  vessel,  the  passage  was  prolonged  to 
the  month  of  October,  when  the  members  of  the 
proposed  colony  were  happy  to  be  landed  on  the 
bleak  and  inhospitable  peninsula  of  Cape  Cod. 
In  this  disastrous  voyage  many  of  the  passengers 
perished,  and  Charles  Clinton  lost  an  only  son 
and  one  of  his  two  daughters. 

Their  original  intentions  being  thus  frustrated, 
Charles  Clinton  and  his  associates  remained  for  a 
time  at  Cape  Cod,  until  a  place  of  settlement 
could  be  chosen.  This  was  at  last  found  in  the 
valley  of  the  Walkill,  in  the  present  county  of 
Orange.  To  this  they  removed  in  the  spring  of 
1731. 

The  choice  of  the  land  for  this  settlement  re 
flects  credit  on  the  sagacity  of  Charles  Clinton. 
Up  to  this  time  the  selection  of  lands  had  been 
principally  directed  by  their  capacity  for  the  growth 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  19 

of  grain.  He,  as  the  leader  of  a  colony  accustom 
ed  to  pastoral  occupations  rather  than  tillage, 
sought  for  soil  which  should  yield  a  rich  and 
abundant  pasturage,  and  thus  formed  the  nucleus 
of  that  industrious  body  of  Irish  Presbyterians, 
whose  luxuriant  fields  of  grass,  and  the  valued 
products  of  their  milk,  justify  the  scriptural  appel 
lation  of  the  land  of  Goshen,  which  has  been 
given  to  this  pastoral  region.  Under  the  influ 
ence  of  that  strong  attachment  to  the  land  of  their 
ancestors,  which  was  not  destroyed  until  after 
years  of  oppression  and  suffering,  this  colony  gave 
to  their  settlement  the  name  of  Little  Britain. 

In  the  early  settlement  of  the  Province  of  New- 
York,  it  had  been  customary  for  bands  of  emigrants 
to  unite  together  under  a  leader  for  the  purpose 
of  mutual  defence  and  support.  Such  leaders 
were,  in  many  cases,  persons  of  capital  and  enter 
prise,  who  sought,  in  the  establishment  of  a  colo 
ny,  a  profitable  investment  for  themselves,  in  a 
property  entailed  upon  their  descendants.  The 
policy  of  the  early  government,  under  both  Bata- 
vian  and  English  rule,  favoured  this  mode  of  set 
tlement  ;  and  grants  were  made  of  large  tracts  to 
the  leaders,  in  order  to  be  apportioned  among  their 
followers  upon  tenures  almost  feudal  in  their  char 
acter.  In  this  there  was  no  real  injustice,  because 
much  of  the  cost  of  the  transportation  of  the  emi 
grants  from  Europe  was  defrayed  by  the  leader 


20  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

of  the  expedition,  who  also  paid  the  fees,  small 
though  they  might  be,  attendant  upon  issuing  the 
patent,  and  extinguished  the  Indian  claim.  Such 
tenures  still  exist  among  us;  and  the  occupiers 
of  the  land,  forgetful  of  the  circumstances  under 
which  their  predecessors  acquired  their  possessions, 
are  apt  to  grumble  at  the  moderate  rents  in  kind, 
and  personal  services,  which  serve,  in  fact,  to  pay 
the  cost  of  emigration  and  settlement.  The  com- 

o 

panions  of  Charles  Clinton,  although  they  looked 
up  to  him  as  a  leader,  were  not  dependant  in  their 
circumstances.  The  settlement  at  Little  Britain 
was  therefore  made  on  principles  of  strict  equali 
ty,  each  head  of  a  family  acquiring  in  fee  that  por 
tion  of  land  which  his  capital  or  his  command  of 
labour  enabled  him  to  occupy  to  advantage.  In 
spite  of  this  principle  of  equality,  the  superior  in 
telligence  and  education  of  Charles  Clinton  gave 
him  a  consideration  among  his  neighbours  as  ele 
vated  as  if  he  had  become  possessed  of  manorial 
rights. 

Although  distant  no  more  than  sixty  miles  from 
New- York,  and  only  eight  from  the  bank  of  the 
Hudson,  the  settlement  of  Little  Britain  was  a 
frontier  post.  The  house  of  Charles  Clinton  was 
therefore  fortified,  as  a  security,  not  for  himself  and 
family  alone,  but  as  a  refuge  for  his  neighbours  in 
threatened  attacks  from  Indian  enemies. 

In  becoming  an  integral  part  of  a  well-govern- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  21 

ed  community,  the  supremacy  of  the  laws  was  to 
be  maintained,  and  he  was  forthwith  named  a  jus 
tice  of  the  peace.  Before  many  years  elapsed, 
his  usefulness  in  this  capacity  was  extended  by  his 
receiving  the  appointment  of  a  judge  of  the  Com 
mon  Pleas  for  the  county  of  Ulster,  within  the  lim 
its  of  which  Little  Britain  at  that  time  fell. 

These  offices,  which  were  then  exercised  without 
emolument,  and  were,  therefore,  no  object  to  those 
who  might  otherwise  have  sought  them  as  a  means 
of  livelihood,  furnish  evidence  of  the  high  estima 
tion  in  which  Charles  Clinton  was  held  by  his 
neighbours  and  by  the  government  of  the  prov 
ince.  In  an  age  of  little  litigation,  his  judicial  du 
ties  did  not  interfere  with  the  cultivation  of  his 
farm,  nor  prevent  his  attention  to  the  education  of 
his  family.  It  has  been  seen  that  his  first-born 
son  died  on  the  passage  from  Europe.  Four  oth 
ers  were  born  to  him  after  his  settlement  at  Little 
Britain.  The  two  eldest  of  these  chose  the  pro 
fession  of  medicine,  and  the  second  of  them  served 
as  surgeon  in  the  combined  English  and  Conti 
nental  army  which  took  the  Havannah  in  1762. 

James,  the  third  son,  was  born  in  1736,  and 
was  educated  under  the  paternal  roof.  When  the 
war  of  1756  broke  out,  his  father  received  the  ap 
pointment  of  lieutenant-colonel  in  the  militia  of  the 
province,  and  the  son  was,  at  the  same  time,  na 
med  an  ensign  in  his  father's  regiment.  In  these 


22  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

capacities  both  were  called  into  active  service,  and 
were  present  at  the  capture  of  Fort  Frontenac  in 
Upper  Canada,  on  the  site  of  the  present  town  ot 
Kingston. 

The  fourth  son  was  called  George,  after  the  co 
lonial  governor  of  that  name,  who  claimed  and 
admitted  the  ties  of  consanguinity  with  the  settler 
of  the  valley  of  the  Walkill.  George  Clinton, 
who  held  for  so  many  years  the  office  of  governor 
of  the  State  of  New-York,  and  died  Vice-presi 
dent  of  the  United  States,  is  too  well  known  in 
American  history  to  require  to  be  commemorated 
by  us.  He  was  also  an  officer  at  the  capture  of 
Fort  Frontenac. 

James  Clinton  had  attained,  at  the  close  of  the 
French  war  in  1761,  the  rank  of  captain,  and 
was  successively  promoted  through  the  intermedi 
ate  stations  to  the  command  of  the  second  regi 
ment  of  Ulster  county  Militia,  which  he  held  at 
the  commencement  of  the  struggle  for  independ 
ence.  His  father  did  not  live  to  see  that  con 
test,  but  died  in  the  year  1773.  James  Clinton, 
in  the  interval  between  the  close  of  the  French 
war  and  the  beginning  of  that  of  the  revolution, 
married  Miss  Mary  Dewitt,  a  descendant  of  a  fam 
ily  from  Holland.  Four  sons  were  the  fruit  of  this 
union,  of  whom  Dewitt,  the  subject  of  this  Me 
moir,  was  the  second. 

On  the  commencement  of  hostilities  in   1775, 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  23 

James  Clinton  was  among  the  first  officers  who 
were  named  by  Congress  to  take  commands  in  the 
army  raised  under  its  authority.  His  first  appoint 
ment  was  as  colonel  in  the  New- York  line;  he 
was  subsequently  promoted  to  the  rank  of  briga 
dier,  and  held  the  commission  of  major-general  at 
the  close  of  the  war.  He  distinguished  himself  in 
the  defence  of  the  passes  of  the  Highlands,  when 
stormed  by  the  British  army  in  1777.  In  this  ac 
tion  he  served  under  the  command  of  his  brother, 
then  commanding,  as  governor  of  the  state,  the 
militia  which  had  been  called  into  active  service, 
while  the  British  forces  were  led  by  Sir  Henry 
Clinton,  the  son  of  the  colonial  governor,  in  hon 
our  of  whom  George  had  been  named. 

He  afterward  commanded  the  forces  collected 
in  the  Valley  of  the  Mohawk  to  oppose  the  Indians 
and  Tories  who  threatened  the  settlements  of  that 
region,  and  subsequently  led  his  army  to  join  that 
of  General  Sullivan,  in  the  expedition  which  drove 
the  Indians  from  their  fastnesses.  Of  this  united 
army  he  commanded  the  right  wing,  and  contrib 
uted  much  to  the  success  of  that  undertaking.  In 
order  to  join  Sullivan,  it  was  necessary  to  make  a 
military  road  from  the  Mohawk  at  Fort  Plain  to 
Lake  Otsego.  Here  boats  were  to  be  built  to  con 
vey  the  troops  with  their  stores,  and,  in  order  to 
float  them  over  the  bars  and  shallows  of  the  up- 

C 


24  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY 

per  Susquehanna,  a  temporary  flush  of  water  was 
obtained  by  damming  up  the  outlet  of  the  lake. 

He  last  appeared  in  arms  at  the  siege  of  York- 
town,  where  he  aided  in  the  capture  of  Cornwal- 
lis  and  his  army. 

At  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  war  General 
James  Clinton  retired  to  his  estate  in  Orange  coun 
ty.  Here,  however,  he  was  not  suffered  to  remain 
unemployed  in  the  service  of  his  native  state,  but 
was  frequently  called  upon  to  exercise  offices  of 
high  trust,  and  to  perform  legislative  duties. 

Such  was  the  race  from  which  the  subject  of 
our  memoir  derived  his  birth ;  and  his  own  talents 
and  distinguished  public  services,  so  far  from  re 
quiring  the  aid  of  ancestral  dignity  to  illustrate 
him,  would  have  ennobled  the  family  from  which 
he  sprung. 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  25 


CHAPTER  II. 

Birth  of  Dewitt  Clinton. — His  early  Education. — 
He  studies  at  the  Kingston  Academy. — He  is 
present  at  the  Evacuation  of  New-York. — He 
enters  Columbia  College. — Account  of  the  Pro 
fessors  of  that  Institution. — Clinton  distinguish 
es  himself  as  a  Scholar,  and  graduates  with  the 
highest  honours. 

DEWITT  CLINTON  was  born  March  2d,  1769,  at 
Little  Britain,  the  residence  of  his  father.  General 
James  Clinton.  His  early  education  was  intrust 
ed  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Moffat,  the  pastor  of  the  Pres 
byterian  church  in  that  settlement.  In  1782  he 
was  removed  to  the  Academy  of  Kingston,  an  in 
stitution  at  that  time  of  high  celebrity,  under  the 
direction  of  a  Mr.  Addison.  It  was,  in  fact,  the 
only  public  school  that  had  been  able  to  maintain 
its  usefulness  unimpaired  during  the  revolutionary 
war.  The  whole  state,  with  the  exception  of  a 
small  part  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Albany,  had; 
been  the  seat  of  active  hostilities.  The  British 
armies  had  penetrated  from  the  north  as  far  as  Still- 
water,  and  from  the  south  nearly  to  the  present  site 
of  Hudson.  Kingston  itself  had  been  sacked  and 
burned,  but  this  caused  no  long  suspension,  of  the 


26  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

operations  of  its  academy,  which  an  enlightened 
public  spirit  speedily  re-edified.  In  the  year  1784, 
having  mastered  all  the  subjects  taught  at  the 
Kingston  Academy,  Dewitt  Clinton  was  removed 
from  it  by  his  father,  for  the  purpose  of  entering 
upon  a  more  elevated  course  of  study.  For  this 
purpose  the  college  at  Princeton  was  selected,  and 
the  son  accompanied  his  father  to  New-York  on 
their  way  to  that  institution.  General  Clinton  had 
some  months  before  taken  a  part  in  the  ceremonial 
of  receiving  possession  of  New-York  from  the 
British  troops.  His  son  had  then  visited  the  city, 
where  he  witnessed  the  final  evacuation  of  that  im 
portant  position  by  those  who  had  so  long  held  it, 
and  shared  in  the  joy  of  those  who,  after  seven 
years  of  exile,  were  restored  to  their  homes  and 
household  gods. 

Thirty  years  before,  a  college  had  been  estab 
lished,  by  royal  charter,  in  the  City  of  New- York. 
This  had  been  eminently  successful  in  the  produc 
tion  of  sound  and  elegant  scholars ;  and  although 
its  usefulness  had  been  narrowed  by  the  attempt  to 
conduct  it  in  conformity  to  the  system  of  an  estab 
lished  church,  and  for  the  propagation  of  royalist 
principles,  it  had,  notwithstanding,  trained  some  of 
the  most  eminent  men  who  had  taken  the  part  of 
their  country  in  the  Revolutionary  struggle.  This 
institution  had  been  almost  ruined  by  the  war. 
Its  students  and  teachers  had  been  driven  out  to 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  27 

make  room  for  the  sick  of  the  American  army;  its 
president  chased  from  his  post  by  a  mob,  enraged 
at  his  warm  and  vigorous  support  of  the  British 
cause ;  its  library,  then  the  most  complete  on  the 
Continent,  wasted  and  dispersed ;  its  apparatus 
and  museum  destroyed.  The  occupation  of  New- 
York  by  the  British  forces  did  not  mend  its  con 
dition.  Thus,  while  Cambridge,  Princeton,  Phil 
adelphia,  and  Williamsburg  had  in  succession 
become  the  quarters  of  armies,  or  the  actual  seat  of 
hostilities,  without  sustaining  any  injury  to  their 
well-endowed  universities,  that  of  New- York  had 
been  almost  obliterated. 

The  circumstances  in  wThich  young  Clinton  was 
placed  were  the  direct  means  of  reviving  this  de 
cayed  institution.  The  nephew  of  the  governor  of 
the  state  and  the  son  of  one  of  its  most  distinguish 
ed  citizens,  it  appeared  to  be  a  public  disgrace 
that  he  should  be  compelled  to  resort  to  another 
state  for  his  education.  It  was  therefore  deter 
mined  to  attempt  to  reopen  the  deserted  halls  of 
the  college  in  New- York.  A  lucky  chance  per 
mitted  this  to  be  done  under  the  auspices  of  men 
of  no  little  learning. 

On  the  close  of  hostilities,  the  inhabitants  of 
one  of  the  counties  of  Virginia  had  resolved  to  re 
store  a  deserted  academy  of  that  state.  For  this 
purpose  they  had  addressed  themselves  to  Dr.  Ogil- 
vie,  of  Aberdeenshire,  in  Scotland ;  and,  at  his  in- 


28  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

stance,  two  young  men  of  high  promise  and  much 
learning  had  crossed  the  Atlantic.  On  reaching 
Virginia,  they  found  that  the  inducements  which 
had  been  held  out  to  them  were  unfounded,  and 
that  no  provision  had  been  made  for  their  comfort 
able  support.  Thus  disappointed  in  their  expecta 
tions,  they  had  reached  New-York  on  their  return 
to  their  native  country,  the  one  burning  with  in 
dignation  and  disgusted  with  everything  American, 
the  other  in  sorrow  at  leaving  a  country  for  whose 
people  and  institutions  he  had  conceived  an  attach 
ment.  In  this  state  of  mind  they  were  found  by 
Mr.  Duane,  the  mayor  of  the  city  ;  and  while  the 
former  not  only  declined  for  himself,  but  endeav 
oured  to  dissuade  his  companion,  the  latter  joyful 
ly  accepted  a  call  which  promised  the  attainment 
of  his  desires. 

This  young  Scotsman  whom  chance  thus  pre 
sented  was  the  late  John  Kemp,  LL.D.,  who  for 
28  years  after  was  the  soul  of  the  institution,  to 
which,  in  lieu  of  its  former  style  of  King's,  the 
name  of  Columbia  College  was  now  given.  The 
son  of  a  father  who  had  lost  his  property  by  his 
adherence  to  the  cause  of  the  Stuarts,  he  had  been 
brought  up  by  an  uncle.  While  a  student  in  the 
University  of  Aberdeen,  he  had  competed  for,  and, 
after  three  days  of  hard  contest,  gained  the  prize 
of  mathematical  learning.  The  most  valuable 
part  of  this  distinction  was  the  right  of  receiving 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  29 

the  instructions  of  the  mathematical  professor  du 
ring  the  long  vacations  of  seven  months,  which 
interrupt  the  courses  of  the  Scottish  Universities. 

The  professor  at  that  time  was  Hamilton,  who 
outlived  his  pupil,  and  distinguished  the  close  of 
his  life  by  the  publication  of  his  celebrated  argu 
ment  against  the  popular  belief,  that  a  debt  did 
not  diminish  the  wealth  of  a  nation.  In  this  place 
we  have  only  time  to  say,  that  this  argument,  which 
carried  with  it  immediate  conviction,  may  be  con 
sidered  as  having  been  the  distant  cause  of  the 
long  peace  which  has  continued  among  civilized 
nations  since  the  downfall  of  Napoleon. 

Dr.  Kemp  was  not  unworthy  of  the  privileges 
which  his  previous  proficiency  had  gained  for  him, 
and  left  college  one  of  the  best  mathematicians  of 
the  age.  His  other  attainments  were  also  great : 
he  was  aa  excellent  classical  scholar,  and  had 
mastered  all  the  physical  knowledge  of  the  day. 

Another  fortunate  chance  secured  to  Columbia 
College  the  services  of  the  Rev.  Wra.  Cochran, 
a  graduate  of  Trinity  College,  Dublin,  a  sound 
and  excellent  classical  scholar.  The  revived  insti 
tution  had  also  the  benefit  of  the  services  of  Ben 
jamin  Moore,  afterward  the  right  reverend  bishop 
of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the  state. 
This  gentleman,  distinguished  for  his  sound  learn 
ing,  his  fine  taste,  and  his  persuasive  eloquence, 
was  a  model  of  mild  courtesy,  and  often  succeeded 


30  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

in  enforcing  discipline  by  an  appeal  to  feelings  of 
honour  and  sense  of  character,  when  harsh  meas 
ures  would  have  been  unavailable.  His  important 
duties  in  the  organization  of  his  church,  and  the 
high  responsibility  of  the  station  to  which  he  was 
speedily  elevated,  withdrew  him  from  the  labours 
of  education.  After  some  years  he  was  restored 
to  the  college  in  the  capacity  of  its  chief  officer, 
but  without  any  share  in  its  active  tuition ;  and 
under  his  rule  the  institution  rose  to  a  high  degree 
of  prosperity,  from  which  it  fell  for  a  time  under 
the  administration  of  an  officer,  whose  high  abili 
ties  and  learning  were  not  tempered  by  the  pru 
dence  and  caution  for  which  Bishop  Moore  was  so 
eminent. 

Dr.  Moyes,  who  filled  the  chair  of  Natural  His 
tory  and  Chemistry,  had  the  misfortune  to  be 
blind ;  yet  his  lectures  were  popular  and  instruct 
ive.  He  had  the  high  merit  of  being  the  first  to 
introduce  the  latter  science  into  the  United  States, 
freed  from  the  dreams  of  alchymy.  It  was,  how 
ever,  still  in  its  infancy,  and  the  brilliant  discoveries 
of  Lavoisier  were  not  yet  received  or  even  comple 
ted.  Hence,  in  after  life,  Clinton  found  the  neces 
sity  of  keeping  up  with  the  progress  of  this  sci 
ence,  of  which  even  the  language  in  which  he 
had  studied  it  was  entirely  changed.  This  labour, 
however  irksome,  he  encountered. 

The  faculty  of  the  college  was  completed  by 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  3l 

the  appointment  of  Samuel  Bard,  M.D.,  to  the 
chair  of  Natural  Philosophy,  and  of  Dr.  Grose  to 
that  of  Metaphysical  Science. 

Of  this  faculty,  Messrs.  Kemp  and  Cochran 
alone  devoted  their  whole  time  to  the  business  of 
their  chairs.  The  other  gentlemen  had,  in  addi 
tion,  other  professional  pursuits.  This  was  for  the 
moment  favourable  ;  for  they  wrere  men  of  high 
eminence  and  learning,  who  were  collected  by  the 
wants  of  the  growing  city,  and  were  thus  enabled 
to  afford  their  valuable  services,  at  a  time  when 
the  dilapidated  state  of  the  finances  of  the  college, 
and  the  limited  number  of  the  pupils,  would  not 
have  permitted  the  call  of  persons  of  equal  attain 
ments  for  the  specific  duty. 

The  organization  that  was  at  this  time  attempt 
ed  of  a  university,  which,  with  the  college  of  New- 
York  as  its  centre,  wras  intended  to  include  all  the 
public  seminaries  of  the  state,  was  a  plan  of  much 
promise,  and,  had  it  been  pursued  in  the  spirit  of 
those  who  proposed  it,  might  have  been  attended 
with  incalculable  advantage.  It  is  remarkable, 
that  it  seems  to  have  been  the  model  on  which, 
some  years  later,  the  University  of  France  was 
framed ;  and  that  has  been  pre-eminently  success 
ful.  The  two  projects,  however,  differed  in  one 
essential  feature.  The  central  administration  of 
the  University  of  France  is,  indeed,  presided  over 
by  a  minister  of  state,  but  it  includes  in  its  body 


32  A  M  E  R  I  C  A  N    B  I  O  G  R  A  P  II  Y. 

men  who  have  risen  to  it  by  success  as  teach 
ers;  the  board  of  regents  of  the  University  of  the 
State  of  New-York  is  elected  by  the  Legislature, 
and,  from  the  first,  all  men  of  practical  skill  in  in 
struction  seem  to  have  been  carefully  excluded. 

We  need  only  say,  the  scheme  was  not  carried 
into  effect.  Columbia  College  was  soon  withdrawn 
from  all  but  the  nominal  jurisdiction  of  the  regents ; 
and  no  unity  of  purpose  or  action  exists  among  the 
colleges  and  academies  of  the  state.  Finally,  on 
the  establishment  of  the  school  fund,  it  was  not 
considered  expedient  to  vest  its  management  in 
that  board,  which,  had  it  been  efficient,  would  have 
seemed  to  be  the  proper  organ  for  dispensing  the 
public  bounty. 

Dewitt  Clinton  was  the  first  matriculated  stu 
dent  of  the  college,  re-established  in  the  manner 
we  have  mentioned,  and  was  admitted  to  the  ju 
nior  class.  The  instructions  of  the  able  teachers 
who  have  been  named  were  not  without  their  ef 
fect  upon  the  future  character  and  services  of  Clin 
ton.  In  no  well-conducted  institution  would  he 
have  failed  to  become  a  distinguished  scholar ;  but 
there  were  certain  views  and  principles  which  he 
could  not,  at  that  time,  have  heard  discussed  in 
any  other  institution.  Dr.  Kemp,  the  favourite 
pupil  of  Professor  Hamilton,  was  in  the  habit,  in 
his  mathematical  course,  of  enforcing  the  yet  un 
published  views  of  his  master  on  the  subject  of 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  33 

public  debts ;  and  urging  the  necessity  of  provi 
ding  for  every  debt  contracted  a  sum  sufficient  not 
only  to  defray  the  interest,  but  to  pay  off  the  prin 
cipal  by  an  annuity.  In  his  lectures  in  illustra 
tion  of  the  mechanical  part  of  natural  philosophy, 
he  prided  himself  on  giving  to  every  subject  a 
practical  bearing,  and  thus  the  principles  and  his 
tory  of  canal  navigation  formed  a  favourite  theme. 
He,  in  particular,  insisted  on  the  necessity  of  aban 
doning  all  attempts  to  improve  the  navigation  of 
small  rivers,  and  of  substituting  canals  for  the 
whole  distance;  illustrating  his  position  by  the 
celebrated  saying  of  Bradley,  that  such  streams 
"  were  intended  by  the  Almighty  for  feeding  ca 
nals."  At  the  time  that  Clinton  was  his  pupil,  his 
acquaintance  with  the  topography  of  the  United 
States  would  not  probably  have  enabled  him  to 
have  formed  the  clear  and  lucid  views  he  was  sub 
sequently  in  the  habit  of  expressing,  in  relation  to 
the  capacities  of  the  State  of  New-York  for  inland 
navigation.  These  became  afterward  a  matter  of 
public  record,  in  a  letter  he  addressed  to  his  friend 
Dr.  Beattie.  In  this  he  points  out  the  possibility 
of  a  canal  navigation  from  Oswego  to  Albany,  and 
an  extension  to  the  West  by  the  Seneca  River  to 
the  heads  of  the  Seneca  and  Cayuga  Lakes. 
Among  the  number  of  his  pupils  who  were  dis 
tributed  throughout  the  State  of  New-York,  these 
views  had  made  a  deep  impression,  and  had  a  de- 


34  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

cided  influence  in  preparing  the  public  mind  for 
the  system  which  was  finally  adopted.  In  the 
mind  of  Clinton,  the  financial  arguments  and  true 
principles  of  internal  improvement  enforced  by  his 
teacher,  may  naturally  have  formed  the  basis  of 
the  sound  and  enlightened  views  which  subse 
quently  directed  his  conduct.  If  they  did  no  more, 
they  must  have  had  the  effect  of  exciting  his  curi 
osity,  and  leading  him  to  study  for  himself  those 
principles  of  finance  and  systems  of  internal  im 
provement  to  which  his  attention  was  directed  by 
his  instructer. 

During  the  two  years  Clinton  remained  as  a  stu 
dent  in  Columbia  College,  he  distinguished  him 
self  by  a  marked  superiority  over  all  his  fellows. 
This  superiority  has,  with  a  pardonable  pride, 
been  alluded  to  by  his  instructer,  Dr.  Cochran,  in 
a  letter  to  Dr.  Hosack,  the  eulogist  of  Clinton.  "  I 
found  Mr.  Clinton  apt  to  learn  anything  that  was 
required  of  him.  He  was  clear  in  mathematics, 
and  correct  in  classical  knowledge.  He  did  eve 
rything  well :  upon  the  whole,  he  seemed  likely  to 
me  to  prove,  as  he  did  prove,  a  highly  useful  and 
practical  man  ;  what  the  Romans  call  civilis,  and 
the  Greeks  Tro/lm/eo^,  a  useful  citizen,  and  quali 
fied  to  counsel  and  direct  his  fellow-citizens  to 
honour  and  happiness.  And  now,  in  conclusion,  I 
cannot  but  feel  self-gratulation  and  pride,  I  hope 
a  virtuous  one,  when  I  reflect  on  the  number  of 


DE  WITT     CLINTON.  35 

eminent  persons  that  have  proceeded  from  the  very 
cradle  of  Columbia  College.  Draw,  at  a  venture, 
from  the  old  and  illustrious  seminaries  of  England 
and  Ireland,  the  same  number  of  names  as  we  had 
on  our  books,  and  I  will  venture  to  affirm  that  they 
will  not  be  superior  to  such  men  as  Governor 
Clinton,  Chancellor  Jones,  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  M. 
Mason,  and  some  others." 

In  conversation  Dr.  Cochran  thus  spoke  of  the 
early  talent  of  Clinton.  "  I  hear/'  said  he,  "  that 
his  political  opponents  call  him,  by  way  of  reproach, 
magnus  Jlpollo.  If  he  have  not  degenerated  from 
what  I  knew  him  as  a  boy,  he  is  well  entitled  to 
the  appellation  as  a  title  of  honour." 

Clinton?s  academic  career  closed  in  1786,  when 
he  received  the  usual  degree  of  bachelor  of  arts, 
taking,  at  the  commencement,  the  highest  honour 
which  the  institution  could  bestow.  He  left  to  his 
successors,  as  students  in  Columbia  College,  an 
example  of  steadiness,  diligence,  and  moral  excel 
lence,  which  is  the  more  meritorious,  as  many 
young  men  in  his  position  might  have  been  incli 
ned  to  idleness,  from  the  feeling  that  their  family 
had  already  reached  a  station  which  would  exempt 
them  from  labour ;  and  to  insubordination,  from  the 
knowledge  that  their  teachers  held  office  during 
the  pleasure  of  their  nearest  connexions. 

It  is  not  to  be  concealed,  that  there  was  one  oc 
casion  on  which  a  dispute  arose  between  the  stu- 


36  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

dents  and  one  of  the  professors  of  the  college,  and 
that  Clinton  was  put  forward  as  the  champion  of 
his  associates,  on  whose  behalf  he  wrote  a  com 
plaint  to  the  Board  of  Regents,  by  which  the  af 
fairs  of  the  college  were  then  administered.  This 
address  is  marked  with  precocious  ability,  but  had 
no  effect  on  the  proceedings  of  that  board,  which 
sustained  the  professor  in  what  the  students  con 
sidered  an  unwarrantable  exercise  of  authority  du 
ring  hours  not  devoted  to  collegiate  duty.  It  is 
mutually  to  the  credit  of  the  teacher  and  his  pu 
pil,  that  the  prominent  position  in  which  Clinton 
was  placed  on  this  occasion  had  no  effect  upon  his 
standing  in  his  class.  The  collision  had  the  effect 
of  establishing  the  character  of  the  teacher  for 
fearlessness  and  decision;  and  so  little  was  his 
course  blamed  by  the  friends  and  family  of  Clin 
ton,  that  the  immediate  superintendence  of  the 
studies  of  his  younger  brothers,  and  of  his  cousins, 
the  sons  of  the  governor,  was  intrusted  to  the 
professor  against  whose  conduct  Dewitt  Clinton 
had  penned  the  remonstrance. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  37 


CHAPTER  IE. 

Clinton  enters  upon  the  Study  of  the  Law,  and  is 
admitted  to  its  Practice. — He  is  appointed  Pri 
vate  Secretary  to  his  Uncle  the  Governor. — His 
Career  as  a  Political  Writer. — He  retires  to  Pri 
vate  Life,  and  applies  himself  to  Scientific  Pur 
suits. — He  marries. — Character  of  his  Wife. 

UPON  leaving  college  Clinton  entered  immediate 
ly  upon  the  study  of  the  law.  For  this  purpose  he 
was  placed  in  the  office  of  the  Hon.  Samuel  Jones, 
who  at  that  time  held  a  high  rank  at  the  bar  of 
the  State  of  New-York.  This  learned  jurist  had 
taken  no  active  part  in  the  war  of  revolution; 
and,  from  his  quiet  acquiescence  in  the  sway  ex 
erted  by  England  over  the  counties  occupied  by 
her  armies,  had  even  been  accused  of  the  senti 
ments  called  Tory.  Like  many  others  in  the  same 
position,  this  acquiescence  arose  from  no  hostile  feel 
ing  to  the  cause  of  independence,  but  from  the  ne 
cessity  of  the  case.  Enveloped,  with  their  families, 
by  an  armed  force,  and  cut  off  from  all  communi- 
cadon  with  their  countrymen,  they  had  no  choice 
but  submission.  On  the  evacuation  of  New-York, 
Mr.  Jones  resumed  his  profession,  and  took  at  once 
the  highest  place  among  the  barristers  of  the  day. 


38  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

His  legal  eminence  descended  to  his  sons  ;  one  of 
whom  has  reached  the  high  office  of  chancellor  of 
the  state,  and  still  presides  in  one  of  the  most  im 
portant  courts.  The  intimacy  between  the  families 
of  Jones  and  Clinton,  whether  renewed  or  growing 
out  of  the  position  in  which  young  Clinton  was 
placed,  has  continued  from  that  time,  and  has 
been  cemented  by  more  than  one  intermarriage. 

The  routine  of  a  lawyer's  office  affords  little  op 
portunity  for  the  exhibition  of  more  than  steady 
industry,  and  in  this  respect  both  the  teacher  and 
scholar  appear  to  have  been  mutually  satisfied 
with  each  other.  Practice  in  forensic  disputation 
was  sought  by  Clinton  in  an  association  of  young 
men,  engaged,  like  himself,  in  legal  studies ;  and 
here  he  held  a  prominent  rank  among  many  who 
afterward  attained  to  excellence  in  various  ways. 
His  admission  to  the  bar  took  place  after  the  usual 
course  of  three  years'  study,  and  the  examination 
prescribed  by  law.  He  was  not,  howrever,  permit 
ted  to  try  his  success  in  the  practice  of  that  pro 
fession,  although  his  friends  foretold  him  a  brill 
iant  career.  His  uncle,  the  governor  of  the  state, 
at  a  period  of  great  political  excitement,  had  need 
of  a  person  both  of  great  capacity  and  unques 
tioned  fidelity  as  secretary.  This  post  had  been 
filled  by  the  elder  brother  of  Dewitt  Clinton,  who 
was  unfortunately  drowned  in  the  Hudson.  On 
the  death  of  this  brother,  in  order  to  serve  his  rel- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  39 

ative  and  efficient  patron,  he  consented  to  forego 
the  hopes  of  a  profession  which,  in  his  hands, 
promised  both  to  be  productive  of  great  emolu 
ment  and  a  road  to  distinction.  It  has  been  re 
marked  of  English  legislators,  that,  however  ne 
cessary  may  be  the  mere  study  of  the  laws,  and 
particularly  that  of  the  constitution  of  their  coun 
try,  to  those  who  aim  at  political  eminence,  none 
who  have  become  entangled  in  its  practice  have 
distinguished  themselves  as  statesmen.  The  rea 
son  is  obvious ;  the  necessity  of  confining  them 
selves  to  one  side  of  a  cause  creates  a  habit  of 
viewing  a  subject  in  a  single  light,  and  in  its  de 
tails  rather  than  in  its  broad  and  general  bearings. 
The  nice  refinements  of  special  pleading  are  un- 
suited  to  the  ears  of  a  popular  assembly,  and  are 
repugnant  even  to  the  taste  of  a  deliberative  body. 

It  was,  therefore,  fortunate  for  his  country,  and 
particularly  to  his  native  state,  that  Clinton  aban 
doned  so  early  the  profession  of  the  law,  and  en 
tered  into  the  career  of  politics.  Whether  it  were 
equally  so  to  his  own  happiness  may  well  be  ques 
tioned.  The  life  of  Clinton  was  from  this  moment 
one  of  political  strife,  into  which  he  threw  all  the 
force  of  his  ardent  temperament  and  brilliant  tal 
ents,  and  in  which  he  acquired  but  few  disinter 
ested  and  really  attached  friends,  and  made  many 
bitter  enemies. 

We  have  already  stated  that  he  accepted  the  of- 
D 


40  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

fice  of  private  secretary  to  his  uncle  at  a  time  of 
great  excitement.     The  question  of  the  adoption 
of  the  federal  constitution  in  the  place  of  the  old 
confederation  had  just  been  settled.      His  uncle 
had  been  opposed  to  many  of  the  details  of  that 
measure,  and  had  resisted  it  with  all  his  influence 
to  the  moment  when  farther  opposition  would  have 
become  factious.     If  we  look  to  the  progress  in 
wealth  and  population  which  New-York  has  made 
since  that  period,  a  progress  due  not  more  to  the 
blessings  of  a  stable  government  than  to  its  own 
unrivalled  position,  we   may  ascribe   to  George 
Clinton  the  gift  of  prescience.     He  may  have  seen 
that  his  state  was  destined  to  take  the  first  rank  in 
the  confederacy ;  its  chief  city  to  be  the  emporium 
of  the  commerce  of  the  Continent ;  and,  imbued 
with  the   attachment  to   state  rights  which  has 
again  become  so  popular,  may  have  patriotically 
desired  to  secure  to  the  commonwealth  over  which 
he  presided  the  advantages  which  nature  had  pre 
pared  for  it.     If  we  were  to  investigate  the  results 
which  would  have  followed,  had  the  proposition 
which  was  strongly  urged  by  many  been  acceded 
to,  namely,  that  a  general   and  uniform  tariff  of 
duties  should  be  adopted  throughout  the  confeder 
ation,  of  which  each  state  should  receive  into  its 
own  treasury  that  which  was  collected  within  its 
limits,  how  proud  would  have  been  the  position  of 
New-York.     In  its  chief  port  are  collected  half  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  41 

revenues  from  customs  of  the  whole  union ;  and  it 
would  have  attained  this  pre-eminence  years  earli 
er  than  it  actually  did.  Philadelphia  would  not 
have  been  enabled  to  rival  it  so  long  by  the  in 
fluence  of  capital  collected  in  its  two  successive  na 
tional  banks,  and  all  other  cities  must  have  sunk 
in  the  comparison. 

The  State  of  New-York  also  had  no  ill-founded 
claim  to  the  whole  of  the  territory  north  of  the 
42d  degree  of  latitude,  as  far  west  as  the  Missis 
sippi.  This  claim  seemed  to  have  been  considered 
as  unquestionable  so  long  as  the  colonial  govern 
ment  lasted,  and  is  exhibited  upon  the  maps  of 
that  day.  The  adverse  claim  of  Massachusetts 
covered  but  a  narrow  strip,  and  New- York  cut  her 
off  from  the  lands  in  dispute.  No  state,  therefore, 
yielded  so  much  to  the  union  as  New-York.  That 
many  true  patriots  should  have  hesitated  in  muti 
lating  the  sovereignty  under  which  such  revenues 
were  in  prospect,  and  which  might  have  maintain 
ed  its  land-claims  by  force  if  necessary,  is  not  to 
be  wondered  at. 

It  happened,  luckily,  however,  that  a  more  ex 
tended  sense  of  patriotism  prevailed,  which  embra 
ced  not  states  or  separate  interests  of  even  wider 
influence,  but  the  whole  of  that  people  which  had 
stood  side  by  side  in  the  war  of  independence.  But 
let  not  those  who  now  wage  political  warfare  on 
sectional  grounds — who  soeak  of  an  Eastern  and  a 


42  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

Western  interest — who  advocate  abolition  because 
it  will  injure  the  South,  or  a  system  of  finance  that 
will  injure  the  North,  impeach  the  patriotism  of 
those  opposed  to  the  federal  constitution.  The 
modern  politicians  seek  to  cause  a  division  in  inter 
ests  which  are  already  united,  and  whose  severance 
would  create  the  most  disastrous  consequences ;  the 
anti-federalists  sought  to  perpetuate  an  existing 
state  of  things,  from  any  change  in  which  they 
erroneously  anticipated  evil. 

The  discussion  on  the  subject  of  the  constitution 
was  carried  on  in  the  public  papers.  The  cause 
which  prevailed  was  sustained  by  the  veteran  pen 
of  Jay,  the  strong  and  clear  intellect  of  Hamilton, 
arid  the  cool  sagacity  of  Madison.  At  this  day  it 
is  unnecessary  to  say  how  triumphant  were  their 
arguments,  and  how  thoroughly  the  able  exposi 
tion  of  the  constitution  contained  in  the  papers  col 
lected  under  the  name  of  "  The  Federalist"  has 
become  a  part  of  the  common  law  of  the  land. 
Yet  this  powerful  publication  was  not  allowed  to 
remain  unanswered,  and  the  most  able  of  the  op 
posing  arguments  were  found  in  papers  bearing 
the  signature  of  "  A  Countryman."  These  were 
the  production  of  Clinton,  and  carried  conviction 
to  a  large  proportion  of  the  voters  of  the  State  of 
New-York.  If  we  cannot  now  assent  to  the  jus 
tice  of  his  views,  we  may,  notwithstanding,  admire 
the  boldness  which  did  not  shrink  from  a  contest 


D  E  W  I  T  T     C  L  I  N  T  O  N.  43 

with  writers  of  such  transcendent  reputation,  and 
the  ability  which  to  many  minds  appeared  to  have 
gained  a  victory  over  them. 

In  the  state  convention  which  was  assembled 
to  consider  the  new  constitution,  for  the  purpose  of 
its  being  ratified  or  rejected  by  New- York,  General 
James  Clinton  had  a  seat,  and  Governor  George 
Clinton  presided.  In  this  assembly  broad  feelings 
of  patriotism  prevailed  over  the  grounds  which  had 
been  the  basis  of  an  opposition  to  the  adoption 
of  the  constitution.  Dewitt  Clinton  was  present 
at  the  meetings  of  the  convention,  and  reported  its 
debates  for  one  of  the  city  papers.  His  letters,  at 
the  time,  show  him  to  have  been  in  principle  an 
anti-federalist.  Mature  reflection  in  after  days 
changed  his  views  on  this  subject ;  and  his  official 
letter  to  the  mayor  of  Philadelphia,  on  the  occa 
sion  of  the  death  of  Hamilton,  shows  how  com 
pletely  satisfied  he  had  then  become  of  the  wis 
dom  which  directed  the  framers  of  the  constitution 
of  the  United  States. 

The  adoption  of  the  constitution  led  to  the  for 
mation  of  parties  upon  principles  entirely  new. 
The  anti-federalists  acquiesced  in  the  declared  will 
of  the  majority,  and  dropped  their  distinctive  ap 
pellation  ;  nor  did  the  paramount  influence  of 
Washington,  in  his  office  of  president,  admit  of 
the  formation  of  an  opposition  upon  the  ancient 
grounds.  Those  who  accepted  representative  of- 


44  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

fices  under  the  new  constitution  would  have  form 
ed  an  opposition  to  the  administration  with  an  ill 
grace,  on  the  ground  of  their  being  dissatisfied 
with  the  provisions  of  that  instrument.     A  ques 
tion  on  which  to  organize  an  opposition  was,  how 
ever,  speedily  found  in  the  state  of  the  external  re 
lations  of  the  country.     It  is  foreign  to  our  pur 
pose  to  enter  into  the  questions  of  the  mission  of 
Genet,  and  the  commercial  treaty  made  with  Eng 
land  by  Jay.     Suffice  it  to  say,  that  on  these  ques 
tions  George  Clinton  placed  himself  in  the  oppo 
sition  to  the  general  government.     Into  this  posi 
tion  he  was,  perhaps,  as  much  driven  by  attacks 
upon  himself  by  the  federal  party,  as  impelled  by 
his  own  sentiments.     The  supporters  of  the  federal 
constitution,  dissatisfied  with  the  opposition  made 
by  George  Clinton  to  its  adoption,  sought  a  new 
candidate  for  the  office  of  governor  in  the  person 
of  Chief-justice  Jay,  and  nearly  succeeded  in  elect 
ing  him.     He,  in  fact,  received  a  clear  majority  of 
all  the  votes,  but  was  not  returned  by  the  canvass 
ers  for  want  of  a  strict  compliance  with  the  pre 
scribed  legal  forms.     In  the  published  discussions 
which  grew  out  of  this  contest  in  the  State  of 
New-York,  and  in  the  opposition  to  the  foreign 
policy  of  the   general    government,  the   pen  of 
Clinton  found  full  occupation  in  the  support  of  his 
uncle's  cause.     However  ephemeral  were  his  es 
says,  which  appeared  in  anonymous  forms,  and 


DEWITT      CLINTON.  45 

however  unwilling  he  may  have  been  in  after  life 
to  avow  his  juvenile  efforts  as  a  political  gladiator, 
he  acquired  the  reputation  of  a  most  powerful  and 
efficient  writer.  So  high  was  this  reputation,  that 
every  paper  of  unusual  merit  which  appeared  on 
the  side  which  he  espoused  was  ascribed  to  him  as 
the  author,  and  he  thus  was  often  wrongfully  sus 
pected  of  personal  and  illiberal  attacks,  from  which 
his  own  manly  nature  would  have  shrunk  with  ab 
horrence. 

In  1794,  while  the  aggressions  of  the  two  great 
belligerants  of  Europe  upon  our  commerce  threat 
ened  to  involve  the  United  States  in  a  war  with  one 
of  them,  Dewitt  Clinton  united  with  several  other 
young  men  in  the  formation  of  a  company  of  vol 
unteer  artillery.  Of  this  he  was  chosen  lieutenant, 
and  soon  became  the  captain.  The  company  form 
ed  a  part  of  the  regiment  commanded  by  Colonel 
Bauman,  a  corps  even  yet  remembered  for  its  sol 
dierlike  deportment  and  exemplary  discipline.  In 
this  corps  he  rose  to  the  rank  of  major. 

While  acting  as  private  secretary  to  his  uncle, 
he  was  also  called  to  fill  the  stations  of  secretary 
to  the  regents  of  the  University,  and  to  a  board  of 
commissioners  who  had  charge  of  fortifying  the 
harbour  of  New-York  at  the  expense  of  the  state. 
These  appointments  show  that  he  already  filled  a 
higher  place  in  the  estimation  of  the  community 
than  is  usually  reached  by  the  young  men  who 


46  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

hold  the  confidential  but  unimportant  place  of  pri 
vate  secretary  to  a  governor.  All  these  appoint 
ments  ceased  when  his  uncle  failed  in  securing  a 
re-election  to  the  office  of  governor  in  1795.  The 
federal  party  now  predominated  beyond  all  possi 
bility  of  question ;  and  John  Jay,  the  chief  justice 
of  the  United  States,  was  elected  in  the  room  of 
George  Clinton. 

Dewitt  Clinton  was  thus  restored  to  private  life, 
and  ceased  to  have  any  engrossing  pursuit.  He, 
in  consequence,  sought  to  re-establish  himself  in 
the  profession  of  the  law,  and  entered  into  a  part 
nership  with  Mr.  John  McKesson  for  that  purpose. 
The  business  which  presented  itself  was  respect 
able,  and  promised  to  increase  rapidly ;  but,  long 
before  the  slow  steps  by  which  young  men  ac 
quire  celebrity  at  the  bar  could  be  accomplished, 
he  was  again  recalled  to  political  life.  He,  how 
ever,  made  use  of  this  interval  of  leisure  to  apply 
himself  to  the  study  of  the  sciences,  in  which  he 
had  already  made  some  progress,  and  for  which  he 
had  a  decided  taste.  The  direction  which  he  took 
in  this  pursuit  was  influenced  in  a  great  degree  by 
his  intimacy  with  Drs.  Hosack  and  Mitchill.  The 
former  was  at  this  time  professor  of  botany,  the  lat 
ter  professor  of  chemistry  in  Columbia  College.  The 
latter,  in  addition,  was  almost  the  only  cultivator 
of  the  science  of  zoology  the  United  States  then 
possessed.  In  compliance  with  the  pursuits  of  his 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  47 

two  associates,  natural  history,  in  its  several  branch 
es,  became  the  object  of  his  studies.  In  this  de 
partment  of  knowledge  he  made  no  mean  profi 
ciency  ;  and  it  is  not  a  little  remarkable,  that,  while 
the  two  professors  added  no  very  important  facts 
to  science,  the  amateur,  as  we  shall  see,  made  dis 
coveries,  one  of  which,  at  least,  was  of  great  in 
terest 

During  the  same  interval  Clinton  entered  into  a 
matrimonial  connexion.  The  lady  whom  he  mar 
ried  was  Miss  Maria  Franklin,  the  daughter  of  an 
eminent  merchant  in  New-York  of  the  Quaker 
persuasion.  This  union  was  a  happy  one,  but  was 
dissolved  in  1818  by  the  death  of  Mrs.  Clinton, 
who  left  a  family  of  four  sons  and  three  daughters. 

Mrs.  Clinton  was  a  lady  of  retiring  and  domes 
tic  habits ;  ill-suited,  perhaps,  to  advance  the  po 
litical  interests  of  her  husband,  but  better  qualified, 
for  that  very  reason,  to  be  his  solace  in  the  con 
stant  anxieties  and  occasional  reverses  to  which 
he  was  exposed  in  his  political  career.  Her  worth 
may  be  best  illustrated  by  the  tender  recollection 
and  high  esteem  with  which  her  children  still  re 
gard  the  amiable  qualities  and  virtues  of  their 
mother.  She  was  a  w^arm-hearted,  accomplished, 
and  most  amiable  woman,  devoted  to  the  happiness 
of  her  husband  and  children,  and  her  death  was 
an  irreparable  loss  to  her  family. 

We  have  thus  passed  the  period  of  Clinton's  tu- 
E 


48  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

telage,  whether  literary  or  political.  Up  to  this 
time  he  had,  in  the  latter  respect,  been  the  agent 
and  mouthpiece  of  his  uncle  the  governor ;  we 
have  next  to  contemplate  him  aspiring  to  eminence 
under  the  direction  of  his  own  intellect. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  49 


CHAPTER  IV. 

State  of  Parties  under  the  Administration  of  Jld- 
ams. — Clinton  is  elected  a  Member  of  Assem 
bly. — He  is  chosen  Senator  of  the  State. — He 
becomes  a  Member  of  the  Council  of  Appoint- 
ment. — Contest  in  respect  to  the  Powers  of  that 
Council. — State  Convention. — His  Victory  over 
Jay. — He  is  elected  a  Senator  of  the  United 
States,  where  he  is  opposed  to  Gouverneur  Mor 
ris. —  Debate  on  the  Mississippi  Question. — 
Clinton's  Speech  on  that  occasion. — He  acquires 
a  high  Reputation  as  a  Statesman. 

THE  federal  party,  which  acquired  the  superiori 
ty  in  the  State  of  New-York  in  1795,  seemed  des 
tined  to  an  ascendency  of  unlimited  duration. 
Looking  proudly  to  Washington  himself  as  their 
leader,  their  principles  seemed  indissolubly  united 
with  the  honour  and  prosperity  of  their  country. 
The  sympathy  with  which  the  cause  of  the  French 
revolution  had  for  a  time  been  regarded  by  many 
American  citizens,  had  been  replaced,  to  a  great 
degree,  by  disgust  at  the  insolent  pretensions  of 
the  rulers  of  that  country,  and  resentment  for  their 
aggressions.  It  thus  happened,  that,  when  John 
Adams  succeeded  Washington  in  the  presidential 


50  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

chair,  the  nation  was  urged  by  a  feeling  almost 
universal  into  hostilities  with  France;  and,  al 
though  no  absolute  declaration  of  war  was  made 
on  either  side,  the  commerce  of  the  United  States 
was  attacked  wherever  it  was  accessible  by  French 
cruisers  and  privateers ;  while  measures  were  adopt 
ed  for  the  defence  of  the  seacoast  by  fortifications 
and  the  creation  of  a  navy.  A  more  questionable 
step  was  taken  by  the  administration  in  the  enlist 
ment  of  an  army,  which,  in  the  opinion  of  many, 
was  uncalled  for,  because  our  shores  were,  in  fact, 
inaccessible  to  any  French  force  more  powerful 
than  a  single  vessel. 

Experience  has  shown  us,  that  the  measures  of 
providing  a  naval  armament  and  an  army  on  a 
peace  establishment,  which  might  have  served  as 
the  nucleus  of  an  efficient  force  in  war,  were  both 
wise.  It  was  also  a  sagacious  step  to  take  ad 
vantage  of  the  excitement  produced  by  French 
aggressions,  to  obtain  the  public  consent  to  these 
important  means  of  national  security.  They  were, 
however,  seized  by  the  opponents  of  the  adminis 
tration  as  objects  of  attack.  So  long  as  the  pop 
ular  excitement  against  France  remained,  the  at 
tacks  of  the  opposition  were  fruitless ;  but  when 
Adams,  in  an  evil  hour  for  his  party,  humbled  him 
self  and  his  country  before  the  French  Directory, 
all  enthusiasm  was  at  an  end. 

It  would  appear  that  not  only  Clinton  himself, 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  51 

but  his  uncle,  had  partaken  of  the  popular  feeling. 
When  the  citizens  of  New-York  turned  out  to  la 
bour  on  the  fortifications  for  the  defence  of  their 
harbour,  old  George  Clinton  was  seen  among  them, 
encouraging  their  toils  by  his  example  ;  and  De- 
witt  Clinton  was  daily  engaged  in  drilling  his 
company  to  the  use  of  the  heavy  guns  mounted  on 
the  battery. 

The  attempt  of  the  administration  to  maintain  a 
regular  army  after  the  danger  of  war  was  at  an  end, 
the  load  of  obloquy  which  was  poured  upon  the 
navy,  but  still  more  the  necessity  of  imposing  tax 
es,  coupled  with  laws  construed  as  interfering  with 
the  right  of  personal  liberty,  speedily  rendered  it 
unpopular.  The  party  with  which  the  Clintons 
were  connected  acquired  the  ascendency,  and  Jef 
ferson  was  elected  president  of  the  United  States. 

Even  while  the  victory  was  yet  doubtful,  partial 
successes  were  gained  by  the  party  in  opposition 
to  Mr.  Adams.  In  1797  Dewitt  Clinton  was 
elected  a  member  of  the  Legislature,  and  in  1798 
state  Senator.  In  this  capacity  he  was  chosen,  in 
1800,  a  member  of  the  council  of  appointment, 
and  was  engaged  in  a  contest  with  Governor  Jay. 
The  state  constitution  had,  in  addition  to  two  le 
gislative  bodies,  provided  two  councils  to  aid  the 
governor  in  his  executive  and  legislative  capaci 
ties.  The  one  was  styled  that  of  appointment, 
with  whose  concurrence  and  advice  all  offices 


52  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

were  to  be  filled;  the  other  that  of  revision,  to 
which  all  laws  were  to  be  submitted.  Governor 
Jay,  who  had,  in  1798,  been  elected  by  a  tri 
umphant  vote,  was  now  opposed  by  a  majority  in 
both  houses  of  the  Legislature  ;  and  the  council  of 
appointment,  which  was  chosen  from  the  Senate, 
was  of  the  dominant  party.  At  the  meeting  of 
this  council,  Clinton  asserted  for  himself  and  col 
leagues  the  equal  right  of  naming  the  candidates, 
and  of  proposing  the  removal  of  the  holders  of  of 
fice.  Jay,  on  the  other  hand,  maintained  that  the 
sole  right  of  nomination  was  vested  in  the  govern 
or,  and  that  the  council  had  no  other  powers  but 
those  of  confirmation  and  rejection.  In  order  to 
prevent  the  council  from  acting  in  conformity  writh 
the  views  of  its  majority,  Jay  resorted  to  the  bold 
measure  of  adjourning  their  meeting,  and  refusing 
to  call  them  together.  He  then  submitted  the 
question  to  the  Legislature,  asking  for  an  explan 
atory  law;  but  that  body,  under  the  impression 
that  it  possessed  no  powers  in  the  premises,  recom 
mended  the  call  of  a  convention  for  the  purpose 
of  deciding  the  question.  The  convention  assem 
bled,  and  the  views  of  Clinton  prevailed. 

We  therefore  have  no  reason  to  doubt  that  his 
opinion  was  founded  on  a  correct  interpretation  of 
the  words  of  the  constitution,  although,  as  Jay 
himself  had  prepared  the  original  draught,  it  is  cer 
tain  that  such  was  not  the  intention  of  its  framers. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  53 

It  may  now  be  conceded,  that  in  this  dispute  Clin 
ton  was  actuated  by  the  motive  of  securing  the  su 
premacy  of  his  party,  as  well  as  that  of  obtaining 
a  signal  victory  in  argument  over  a  distinguished 
and  able  adversary ;  and,  in  the  ardour  of  his  strug 
gle  for  superiority,  neglected  to  examine  the  prob 
able  consequences.  It  has  even  been  said,  that  the 
course  he  took  was  not  approved  by  his  uncle,  who 
looked  upon  the  subject  through  the  calmer  medi 
um  of  age  and  experience.  The  victory  he  ob 
tained  in  the  construction  of  the  constitution  over 
a  man  of  such  eminence  and  high  reputation  as 
a  jurist  as  Jay,  is,  however,  calculated  to  give  us 
an  elevated  opinion  of  his  talent  and  legal  learn 
ing,  however  we  may  be  disposed  to  question  his 
prudence. 

It  is  due  to  the  truth  of  history  to  say,  that  the 
consequences  of  this  decision  were  injurious  to  the 
public  interests,  and  were  the  cause  of  that  bit 
terness  of  party  spirit  which  has  made  the  citizens 
of  other  states  stigmatize  the  politics  of  New-York 
as  ferocious.  From  this  partisan  rage  no  one  suf 
fered  more  severely  than  Dewitt  Clinton,  both  in 
his  own  person  and  those  of  his  friends. 

It  appears  by  written  memoranda  in  his  own 
hand,  that  his  views  of  the  proper  mode  of  action 
under  the  new  construction  of  the  constitution  was, 
that  the  offices  of  the  state  should  be  divided  be 
tween  the  two  opposing  parties  in  the  ratio  of  their 


54  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

respective  numbers.  On  this  principle  he  acted, 
when  he  led  the  majority  of  the  council  of  ap 
pointment  ;  and,  could  it  have  become  the  habitual 
custom,  it  would  have  prevented  all  the  objection 
able  consequences  of  the  measure.  But  that  a 
triumphant  party  should  pause  in  the  progress  oi 
removing  its  opponents  after  it  has  obtained  the 
power,  is  not  to  be  expected,  although  there  have 
been  individuals  who,  when  the  appointing  honour 
was  vested  in  them,  have  had  firmness  enough  to 
refuse  to  gratify  their  supporters  at  the  expense  of 
the  removal  of  persons  who  were  faithfully  per 
forming  their  official  duties. 

The  effect  of  this  construction  of  the  constitu 
tion  was  to  secure  the  rule  of  the  State  of  New- 
York  to  the  democratic  party,  and,  for  a  time,  to 
give  to  Clinton  absolute  supremacy.  This  party 
had  secured  the  continuance  of  its  first  successes 
by  a  system  of  discipline  of  the  most  rigid  and 
efficient  character.  All  who  numbered  themselves 
as  its  members  were  required  to  yield  implicit  obe 
dience  to  the  will  of  its  majority ;  that  majority  was 
made  to  move  at  the  beck  of  committees,  which 
concentrated  the  power  in  the  hands  of  a  few  in 
dividuals.  Denunciation  as  a  traitor  was  the  fate 
of  him  who  ventured  to  act  in  conformity  to  his 
individual  opinion,  when  it  did  not  meet  with  the 
general  sanction.  So  powerful  was  this  system  of 
organization,  that  all  opposition  finally  ceased ;  and 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  55 

the  only  question  was,  which  of  two  divisions  was 
in  reality  the  democratic  party.  Thus  the  sup 
porters  of  Burr  and  of  Lewis,  in  their  quest  of  the 
office  of  governor,  and  of  John  Quincy  Adams  for 
a  second  term  of  the  presidency,  claimed  to  be  the 
same  republican  party  which  chose  the  first  as  Vice- 
President  of  the  United  States,  and  the  two  others 
to  their  first  term  of  office. 

Clinton's  talent  lay  in  the  power  of  open  and 
bold  attacks  against  his  adversaries,  and  in  the  ca 
pacity  of  maintaining  his  cause  by  strong  and  well- 
arranged  argument,  not  in  the  management  of  the 
intrigues  which  are  necessary  to  unite  into  one  ex 
pression  various  conflicting  opinions.  In  the  cab 
inet  and  in  the  council,  he  possessed  a  command 
ing  and  prevailing  eloquence ;  in  the  management 
of  individual  temper  and  in  popular  arts,  he  was 
deficient.  It  thus  happened  that  men  of  less  talent, 
but  of  more  address,  secured  to  themselves  the 
power  of  directing  the  movement  of  the  party  even 
while  he  was  its  admitted  chief;  and  when  its 
measures  became  such  as  his  conscience  would  not 
permit  him  to  support,  he  became  the  victim  of 
party  usage. 

As  we  have  been  compelled  to  refer  to  the  con 
test  between  Clinton  and  Jay  in  relation  to  the 
council  of  appointment,  it  is  proper  to  state,  that, 
before  the  death  of  that  distinguished  statesman, 
a  perfect  reconciliation  took  place  between  them. 


56  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

Their  estrangement  had  been  that  of  party  alone ; 
and  personal  feeling,  if  perhaps  inseparable  from 
opposition  of  so  violent  a  character,  was  speedily 
allayed.  Jay  appeared  no  more  in  the  field  of 
political  warfare,  but  his  children  were  subsequent 
ly  ranked  among  the  political  and  personal  friends 
of  Clinton. 

While  a  member  of  the  Assembly,  Clinton  was 
in  the  minority  of  that  body,  and  in  opposition  not 
only  to  the  executive  of  his  own  state,  but  to  the 
administration  of  the  general  government.  His 
course,  however,  was  not  marked  by  the  charac 
ter  of  faction.  On  the  question  of  a  request  to  the 
governor  to  write  to  the  senators  and  representa 
tives  of  the  state  to  endeavour  to  obtain  a  repeal  of 
the  Stamp  Act,  he  voted  in  the  negative ;  thus  set 
ting  at  naught  the  cry  of  his  party,  which  had 
adroitly  connected  this  mode  of  collecting  revenue 
with  the  obnoxious  measure  of  the  British  Parlia 
ment  bearing  the  same  name. 

So,  also,  when  he  took  his  seat  in  the  Senate  of 
the  state,  he  cordially  concurred  in  the  address  to 
President  Adams,  pledging  the  support  of  the  state 
to  the  maintenance  of  the  national  honour  against 
French  aggression. 

Of  the  acts  whose  passage  he  was  instrumental 
in  obtaining,  the  most  important  in  its  consequen 
ces  was  that  for  the  gradual  abolition  of  slavery ; 
a  measure  which  has  been  productive  of  incalcu- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  57 

lable  benefit  to  the  state,  and  which,  although  fa- 
vouied  by  Governor  Jay,  he  had  not  ventured  to 
recommend  in  his  speeches  to  the  legislature.  He 
also  moved  a  resolution  proposing  the  amendment 
which  was  soon  after  made  in  the  Constitution  of 
the  United  States,  by  which  the  President  and 
Vice-President  are  designated  in  the  electoral  vote. 

When  his  authority  over  the  dominant  party  of 
the  state  was  in  its  acme,  he  was  elected  Senatoi 
of  the  United  States.  This  high  rank  he  attained 
in  1801,  when  but  32  years  old,  being  one  of  the 
youngest  men  who  have  ever  taken  their  seat  in 
that  august  body.  His  colleague  from  the  State 
of  New- York  was  Gouverneur  Morris,  who  still  re 
tained  all  the  vigour  of  his  faculties,  and  had,  in 
addition,  the  advantage  of  long  experience  as  a 
statesman  and  a  political  debater.  A  member  of 
the  old  Congress,  he  had  filled  with  distinguished 
ability  offices  of  the  highest  trust  under  the  fed 
eral  constitution,  and  was,  in  the  Senate  of  the 
United  States,  the  most  eloquent,  if  not  the  most 
powerful  supporter  of  the  principles  of  the  federal 
party.  Clinton  was  thus  placed  in  immediate  op 
position,  and  brought  into  direct  contrast  with  this 
veteran  debater.  In  this  severe  trial,  it  is  sufficient 
for  the  honour  of  Clinton  to  say  that  he  was  not 
worsted. 

The  public  opposition  of  these  distinguished  men 
did,  on  more  than  one  occasion,  take  the  form  of 


58  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

almost  personal  attack;  but  in  their  cooler  mo 
ments,  each  felt  the  ability  and  acknowledged  the 
sincerity  of  his  antagonist.  It  thus  happened  that 
the  very  circumstances  of  party  opposition,  which 
brought  into  direct  contact  men  who  might  other 
wise  have  been  estranged,  led  to  an  intimate  and 
sincere  friendship,  the  result  of  mutual  esteem  and 
admiration.  Of  these  two  remarkable  statesmen, 
Clinton,  although  the  youngest,  was  the  most 
sound  and  the  most  practical ;  Morris,  although  of 
maturer  years,  exhibited  more  of  an  almost  youth 
ful  ardour. 

The  most  important  debate  which  occurred  in 
the  Senate  while  Clinton  remained  a  member,  wras 
that  on  the  question  of  the  navigation  of  the  Mis 
sissippi.  By  a  treaty  with  Spain,  made  in  1795, 
the  right  of  the  United  States  to  navigate  that  riv 
er  had  been  admitted, "  from  its  source  to  the  sea  ;" 
and,  in  addition,  the  privilege  of  depositing  mer 
chandise  in  the  port  of  New-Orleans  had  been 
granted  for  the  period  of  three  years.  The  same 
treaty  contained  a  promise  that  this  permission 
should  be  continued,  or  an  equivalent  establishment 
assigned  to  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  on  an 
other  part  of  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi. 

Without  any  notice  or  the  assignment  of  the 
promised  equivalent,  this  right  was  withdrawn  by 
the  local  Spanish  authorities ;  and  all  trade  with 
American  vessels  navigating  the  Mississippi  was 
interdicted. 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  59 

The  sensation  produced  by  this  act  among  the 
growing  population  of  the  West  was  prodigious, 
and  the  leaders  of  the  opposition  in  Congress  saw 
in  it  an  opportunity  for  regaining  the  popularity 
which  their  party  had  lost  under  the  adminstration 
of  Mr.  Adams.  A  series  of  resolutions  was  moved 
in  the  Senate  by  Mr.  Ross,  of  Pennsylvania,  which 
amounted  to  a  declaration  of  war  against  Spain. 
These  resolutions  were  opposed  by  Mr.  Breck- 
enridge,  who  moved  a  substitute,  authorizing  the 
calling  out  of  80,000  militia,  and  the  establish 
ment  of  arsenals  on  the  Western  waters. 

In  the  debate  which  ensued,  Clinton  took  a  de 
cided  lead  on  the  side  of  the  administration.  His 
speech  delivered  on  this  occasion  is  remarkable  for 
its  sound  and  luminous  exposition  of  the  state  of 
the  question,  and  of  the  principles  of  international 
law  which  were  applicable  to  it.  It  furnished  the 
basis  of  the  speeches  of  the  other  friends  of  the 
administration,  and  its  arguments  met  with  no  sat 
isfactory  reply  from  the  opposition.  The  latter 
party,  however,  directed  against  Clinton  the  weap 
ons  of  invective  and  irony,  for  which  his  compara 
tive  youth  furnished  the  material.  One  of  the 
senators  from  New-Jersey  descended  to  taunting 
language,  while  Clinton's  colleague  veiled  his  at 
tack  under  the  guise  of  compliment  to  his  impress 
ive  eloquence,  and  the  ingenuous  glow  on  his 
youthful  cheek. 


60  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

Clinton  continued  for  two  years  in  the  Senate  of 
the  United  States,  and  his  reputation  for  ability  as 
a  statesman,  formerly  confined  to  the  limits  of  his 
native  state,  became  national.  He  was  on  all 
sides  looked  up  to  as  the  most  rising  man  in  the 
Union,  and  may  reasonably  have  seen  in  perspect 
ive  the  highest  honours  in  the  gift  of  the  people. 
The  close  of  his  senatorial  duties  was  attended 
by  a  controversy  of  a  very  disagreeable  character 
with  one  of  the  senators  from  New-Jersey ;  and  of 
all  the  mere  political  contests  in  which  Clinton 
was  engaged,  this  alone  seems  to  have  left  any  im 
pression  of  resentment  on  his  mind.  We  find  him 
referring  to  the  name  of  his  opponent  many  years 
afterward,  although  not  with  anger,  yet  in  a  man 
ner  which  shows  that  the  circumstance  was  not 
forgotten.  Whatever  opinion  may  now  be  formed 
of  the  merits  of  this  controversy,  no  doubt  can  be 
entertained  that  it  was  provoked  by  the  senator  from 
New-Jersey,  and  that  at  a  time  when  a  generous 
antagonist  would  have  cautiously  abstained  from 
attack,  as  it  wras  made  after  it  had  become  known 
that  Clinton  had  accepted  the  mayoralty  of  New- 
York,  and  was  therefore  about  to  leave  the  Senate 
of  the  United  States. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  61 


CHAPTER  V. 

Clinton  is  appointed  Mayor  of  the  City  of  JYew- 
York. — Important  Duties  of  that  Office. — His 
successive  Reappointments  and  Removals. — Fluc 
tuations  of  Party. — Causes  of  his  Decline  in 
Popularity. — His  great  Ability  as  a  Criminal 
Judge. — The  College  Riot. — His  Energy  as 
Head  of  the  Police.  —  Threatened  Riots  pre- 
ventedby  his  Measures  of  Precaution. — Aggres 
sions  of  British  Cruisers  in  the  Waters  of  New- 
York. — Breaches  of  Neutrality  attempted  by  the 
French. — Clinton's  Jicts  on  these  Occasions. 

IN  1803  Clinton  was  appointed  mayor  of  the 
city  of  New- York.  This  office  was  at  that  time 
held  by  a  commission  from  the  executive  of  the 
state,  exercised  under  the  construction  of  the  con 
stitution  to  which  we  have  referred  by  the  council 
of  appointment.  It  was  of  much  greater  impor 
tance  than  it  has  possessed  of  late  years.  The 
mayor  presided  in  the  meetings  of  the  Common 
Council,  not  yet  divided  into  two  chambers,  and  in 
this  body  he  had  a  vote  and  a  deliberative  voice. 
A  great  number  of  valuable  offices  were  in  his  di 
rect  gift;  he  was  also  the  chief  judge  of  the  com 
mon  pleas  and  of  the  criminal  court,  as  well  as  the 


62  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

actual  head  of  the  city  police.  Circumstances 
made  one  of  the  functions  which  are  still  exer 
cised  by  the  mayor  of  New-York  of  much  great 
er  importance  than  it  has  recently  been.  The 
city  had  been  visited  by  the  pestilence  known  as 
the  yellow  fever;  and  the  mayor  was  ex  officio 
chairman  of  the  board  to  which,  with  almost  ab 
solute  power,  the  care  of  the  public  health  was 
intrusted. 

The  mayoralty  of  New- York  was  not  only  an 
office  of  high  trust,  but  of  considerable  emolu 
ment.  The  old  privileges  granted  by  the  royal 
charter  were  still  in  force ;  and  the  fees  of  office, 
although  trifling  in  their  items,  had  been  swelled 
by  the  rapid  growth  of  the  population  to  a  large 
aggregate  amount.  The  whole  of  these  fees  had 
been  received  by  his  predecessors  in  office,  and 
had  been  in  one  instance  almost  the  only  basis  of 
a  princely  fortune.  The  common  council,  howev 
er,  had  the  power  of  lowering  the  fees,  while  the 
mayor  possessed  similar  authority  over  certain  of 
the  dues  of  the  corporation.  As  the  source  whence 
the  perquisites  of  the  mayor  were  drawn  hardly  ap 
peared  a  public  burden,  the  corporation,  while  anx 
ious  to  reduce  the  compensation  of  the  mayor,  did 
not  feel  called  upon  to  lessen  the  fees  themselves. 
A  compromise  was  therefore  proposed,  and  acceded 
to  by  Clinton,  by  which  more  than  half  of  the 
mayor's  receipts  as  clerk  of  the  market  went  into 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  63 

the  treasury  of  the  city.  It  would  appear  that,  in 
this  arrangement,  the  emoluments  of  the  office  were 
reduced  to  a  sum  little  more  than  has,  in  times  pro 
fessing  a  more  rigid  economy,  been  attached  to 
that  office  in  the  form  of  a  fixed  salary. 

Whatever  were  the  emoluments  of  the  mayor 
alty,  they  gave  Clinton  no  accession  of  fortune. 
He  felt  that  they  were  intended  not  to  be  hoarded 
for  his  private  use,  but  to  enable  him  to  support  the 
dignity  of  the  office  and  the  hospitalities  of  the 
city.  In  every  part  of  his  career,  the  mere  accu 
mulation  of  wealth  was  considered  as  an  object 
unworthy  of  his  attention.  His  expenditures  ex 
ceeded  the  income  of  his  office,  and  he  retired 
from  it  far  from  affluent  in  his  circumstances. 

His  first  appointment  as  mayor  bore  date  llth 
October,  1803,  and  the  term  of  the  office  being 
annual,  he  was  shortly  after  reappointed  for  the 
year  1804,  as  he  was,  in  due  course,  for  1805  and 
1806. 

In  1807,  a  split  having  taken  place  in  the  dem 
ocratic  party,  he  was  removed  from  the  may 
oralty,  and  Smith  Thompson  named  in  his  stead. 
This  gentleman  did  not  enter  upon  the  duties  of 
the  office,  and  was  superseded  by  the  appointment 
of  Colonel  Willett. 

Colonel  Willett  held  the  office  only  for  one 
year,  when  he  was  replaced  by  Clinton,  who  was 
again  reappointed  in  1809.  Jacob  Radcliff  ob- 
F 


64  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

tained  the  appointment  in  1810,  and  Clinton,  re 
placing  him  in  1811,  was  continued  in  it  until  6th 
March,  1815.  During  all  this  period,  with  the 
exception  of  the  year  1810,  when  the  federalists 
obtained  a  momentary  ascendency,  a  party  claim 
ing  to  be  democratic  possessed  the  appointing 
power.  Clinton,  however,  was  successful  in  main 
taining,  up  to  1813,  wrhat  wras  admitted  to  be  the 
true  succession  of  the  party,  and,  as  often  as  it 
overwhelmed  its  opponents,  was  replaced  in  his 
important  office. 

This  ascendency  was  not  maintained  without 
severe  struggles,  into  which  not  only  public  mo 
tives,  but  personal  feelings  also,  entered.  Burr 
had  been,  up  to  the  election  of  Jefferson,  the  favour 
ite  of  the  democratic  party  of  New- York,  and  had, 
by  the  fascination  of  his  manners,  collected  around 
him  a  knot  of  young  men  possessing  talents,  ener 
gy,  and  reckless  courage  beyond  any  which  has 
ever  been  united  in  the  support  of  any  other  poli 
tician.  Although  Burr  had  lost  the  confidence  of 
the  general  administration,  he  still  endeavoured  to 
maintain  his  stand  with  the  democratic  party  of 
the  State  of  New-York.  In  this  attempt  he  was 
met  and  frustrated  by  Clinton  and  his  friends.  A 
schism  thus  arising  among  individuals,  many  of 
whom  had  been  in  habits  of  the  closest  intimacy, 
both  social  and  political,  could  not  fail  to  be  at 
tended  with  mutual  recriminations.  These,  in 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  65 

several  cases,  passed  the  limits  of  forbearance,  and 
hostile  meetings  were  the  consequence.  In  these 
combats  Clinton  was  compelled,  by  his  position, 
to  take  his  share.  Public  opinion  had  not  been 
declared,  as  it  has  since  so  formally  been,  against 
the  code  of  duelling.  So  far  from  its  being  the 
general  sense  that  duels  were  improper,  it  would 
have  been  fatal  to  any  politician  had  he  refused, 
when  called  upon  for  any  cause  considered  suf 
ficient  in  the  code  of  honour,  to  meet  the  aggriev 
ed  party,  or  had  he  submitted  to  a  technical  in 
sult  without  demanding  satisfaction.  This  state 
of  public  feeling  was  at  once  put  an  end  to  by  the 
death  of  Hamilton,  who  fell  by  the  hand  of  the 
leader  of  that  band,  with  which  Clinton  and  his 
friends  had  been  previously  engaged  in  similar 
conflicts. 

The  division  in  the  party,  which  led  to  the  re 
moval  of  Clinton  from  the  office  of  mayor  in  1807, 
grew  out  of  the  course  of  Governor  Lewis,  who, 
strong  in  his  fortune,  family,  and  connexions,  as 
well  as  in  the  remembrance  of  his  revolutionary 
services,  ventured  to  act  independently.  In  order 
to  replace  him,  the  leaders  of  the  party  selected 
Daniel  D.  Tompkins,  at  that  time  the  junior  judge 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State.  According  to 
his  opponents,  he  was  selected  because  he  possess 
ed  none  of  the  attributes  wrhich  had  led  Lewis  to 
refuse  to  submit  to  dictation.  If,  however,  Clinton 


66  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

and  his  friends  had  hoped  to  find  in  Tompkins  a 
pliant  and  submissive  tool,  whom  they  might  use 
for  a  time  and  discard  at  pleasure,  they  were  mis 
taken.  Tompkins,  with  no  remarkable  native 
powers  of  mind,  and  but  little  acquirement  even 
as  a  lawyer,  possessed,  in  a  most  eminent  degree, 
the  art  of  ingratiating  himself  with  the  people. 
He  had  the  faculty,  which  is  invaluable  to  him 
who  seeks  for  popular  honours,  of  never  forgetting 
the  name  or  face  of  any  person  with  whom  he  had 
once  conversed ;  of  becoming  acquainted  and  ap 
pearing  to  take  an  interest  in  the  concerns  of  their 
families;  and  of  securing,  by  his  affability  and 
amiable  address,  the  good  opinion  of  the  female 
sex,  who,  although  possessed  of  no  vote,  often 
exercise  a  powerful  indirect  influence.  Clinton, 
on  the  other  hand,  absorbed  in  lofty  contempla 
tions,  was  often  absent  in  mind,  was  forgetful  of 
persons  and  all  but  familiar  faces,  and  could  not 
condescend  to  know  the  secrets  of  families. 

Delightful  in  his  hours  of  relaxation  and  in  the 
society  of  his  intimate  friends,  he  found  it  difficult 
to  unbend  himself  with  strangers,  and  set  too  high 
a  value  on  his  time  to  exchange  the  news  of  the  day, 
or  bandy  jests  with  those  transacting  business  with 
him  as  mayor.  Such  traits  of  character,  although 
often  inseparable  from  genius  and  learning,  are 
unfortunate  in  one  who  seeks  for  popular  favour. 
Clinton  was  thus  rendered  liable  to  the  accusation 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  67 

of  pride  and  haughtiness,  when,  in  fact,  only  guilty 
of  abstraction  of  mind  and  want  of  ease  in  his 
manners. 

The  time  at  last  came  when  his  influence,  sup 
ported  by  mental  superiority  and  honesty  of  pur 
pose,  was  to  yield  to  the  popular  talents  of  Tomp- 
kins.  The  administration  of  Madison  resolved 
upon  a  war  with  Great  Britain.  For  this,  in  the 
opinion  of  Clinton,  there  existed  no  new  cause. 
He  viewed  with  dismay  the  unprepared  condition  of 
the  country,  and  the  vast  extent  of  exposed  fron 
tier  of  his  native  state.  We  now  may  consider  it 
as  one  of  the  most  fortunate  occurrences  which 
have  ever  happened  for  the  prosperity  and  char 
acter  of  the  United  States,  that  war  was  declared 
at  this  juncture  against  Great  Britain.  It  was 
justifiable,  not  by  any  new  occurrences,  but  by  a 
long  course  of  aggressions.  The  only  true  ques 
tion  was,  whether  Britain  or  France  should  be  se 
lected  as  an  enemy,  for  both  had  been  equally 
guilty. 

On  this  point  there  had  been  a  wide  difference 
of  opinion  in  the  United  States,  and  it  had  become 
the  line  of  party  demarcation.  The  federalists 
had  been  desirous  that  hostilities  should  be  com 
menced  against  France,  and  had  even,  under  the 
administration  of  John  Adams,  authorized  the  cap 
ture  of  French  vessels.  The  democratic  party,  on 
the  other  hand,  had  desired  that,  if  war  must  take 


68  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

place,  it  should  be  against  England.  With  this 
party  Clinton  had  uniformly  acted,  and  had,  in 
fact,  led  it  in  the  State  of  New-York.  His  opin 
ions  on  this  point  were  unchanged,  but  he  seems 
to  have  desired  that  the  country  should  have  been 
first  put  in  a  posture  of  preparation,  which  might 
have  either  extorted  redress  from  Great  Britain, 
or  would  have  ensured  success  in  the  event  of  a 
war.  His  views  and  acts  in  reference  to  this  ques 
tion  will  be  considered  more  fully  hereafter,  and 
•we  shall  find  that  he  differed  from  the  administra 
tion  only  in  a  desire  that  a  greater  degree  of  en 
ergy  should  be  infused  into  rts  councils.  The 
votes  of  his  friends  in  Congress  fully  justify  this 
view  of  the  subject,  as  well  as  the  recollections  of 
his  intimates.  As,  however,  he  was  in  opposition 
to  the  administration  at  the  time  war  was  decla 
red,  being  actually  nominated  as  a  candidate  for 
the  Presidency  in  opposition  to  Madison,  this  fact 
was  adroitly  seized  to  injure  him. 

If  he  had  even  been  opposed  to  the  declaration 
of  war,  as  were  many  of  unquestioned  patriotism 
at  the  time,  he  might  have  been  fully  justified. 
The  fears  which  many  entertained  of  danger  ari 
sing  from  our  exposed  and  unprepared  position, 
were  shown  to  be  well  founded  by  the  events  of 
the  first  campaigns.  It  is  not  by  the  acquisitions 
obtained  in  that  war,  either  in  territory  or  in  the 
terms  of  the  peace  by  which  it  was  ended,  thst  its 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  69 

consequences  on  our  national  character  are  to  be 
measured.  We  added  nothing  to  our  former 
boundaries,  and  the  principles  on  which  Great 
Britain  iustified  her  aggressions  on  neutrals  were 

u 

not  even  a  subject  of  discussion  in  the  negotiations 
of  Ghent;  peace  was  in  fact  made  without  the 
formal  acquisition  of  any  one  of  the  objects  for 
which  hostilities  were  commenced;  but,  on  the 
other  hand,  our  national  honour  was  maintained; 
our  reputation  as  first  in  maritime  warfare,  and  the 
equals  in  courage  of  our  British  ancestors,  estab 
lished  ;  while  the  more  important  result  was  ob 
tained,  that  from  that  time,  all  feeling  other  than 
one  purely  American  ceased  to  be  entertained  by 
our  citizens.  Up  to  the  war  of  1812,  the  leaven 
of  the  old  disputes  of  the  revolution  was  still  work 
ing,  and  the  most  honest  politicians  could  hardly 
avoid  looking  to  international  questions  as  parti 
sans  of  either  England  or  France ;  and,  even  if 
no  such  motive  existed  in  their  own  minds,  their 
political  opponents  were  sure  to  charge  them  with 
it,  and  thus  force  them  to  defend  a  position  they 
had  not  chosen.  As  an  illustration  of  this  state  of 
things,  we  may  refer  to  the  debate  which  has  al 
ready  been  cited  upon  the  Mississippi  question, 
where  we  find  the  two  parties  mutually  accusing 
each  other  of  subserviency  to  the  belligerents  of 
Europe ;  and  fears  of  the  ambition  of  Bonaparte  on 
the  one  hand,  or  complaints  of  the  tyranny  of 


70  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

Great  Britain  on  the  other,  taking  the  place  of 
sound  argument  on  American  grounds. 

We  still  know  aged  men  who  firmly  believe 
that  all  the  federal  party  were  identical  with  the 
Tories  of  the  revolution,  and  others  who  associate 
their  democratic  opponents  with  the  Jacobins  of 
France.  The  war  of  1812  put  an  end  to  this 
state  of  things.  In  the  contests  of  party,  no  ques 
tion  is  now  debated  except  on  the  ground  of  its 
bearings  on  the  interests  of  our  own  country,  and 
the  accusation  of  being  subservient  to  foreign  in 
fluence  is  no  longer  urged  against  an  adversary, 
not  because  the  weapon  of  misrepresentation  has 
ceased  to  be  employed  in  politics,  but  because  such 
charges  could  no  longer  receive  belief. 

Clinton  filled  the  office  of  mayor  and  performed 
its  functions  highly  to  his  own  credit  and  to  the 
advantage  of  the  community.  His  conduct  in 
presiding  over  the  deliberations  of  the  common 
council  was  marked  with  dignity,  decision,  and 
impartiality,  warranting  the  support  of  his  political 
friends,  and  conciliating  the  suffrages  of  his  adver 
saries.  As  presiding  judge  of  the  criminal  court, 
he  secured  the  respect  of  the  bar  for  his  legal 
learning  and  ability;  he  was  prompt  in  the  de 
spatch  of  business,  yet  patient  in  listening  to  the 
criminal's  defence ;  while  the  poor  and  friendless 
found  in  their  judge  a  counsel,  the  rich  and  pow 
erfully  connected  derived  from  their  social  ad  van- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  71 

tages  no  immunity  from  merited  punishment. 
The  latter  attribute  he  had  an  opportunity  of  ex 
hibiting  in  a  memorable  instance. 

At  the  Commencement  of  Columbia  College  in 
1811,  a  disturbance  occurred  in  the  church  where 
the  ceremony  was  performed.  A  student  who 
had  been  refused  his  degree  in  a  public  manner, 
found  a  supporter  in  one  of  the  audience,  who 
mounted  the  stage,  and  appealed  to  the  assem 
blage  from  the  acts  of  the  provost,  Dr.  Mason. 
Others  speedily  joined  in  the  clamour.  The  pro 
vost,  in  attempting  to  restore  order,  was  driven 
from  the  stage ;  and  the  proceedings  of  the  day, 
although  finished,  for  form's  sake,  from  the  pulpit 
by  the  president,  were  drowned  by  noise  and 
clamour. 

The  acts  of  several  of  the  parties  were  thought 
by  a  grand  jury  to  warrant  an  indictment  for  riot, 
and  the  accused  were  tried  before  Clinton.  The 
cause  was  defended  on  the  ground  of  resistance  to 
oppression ;  and  the  parties  were  of  such  standing 
and  promise — a  promise  in  several  of  them  well 
confirmed  by  their  subsequent  brilliant  career — as  to 
excite  the  greatest  interest  in  their  behalf.  Fears 
were  even  entertained  by  those  who  knew  not  his 
stern  principles  of  rectitude,  that  the  judge,  from  his 
known  respect  for  the  popular  voice,  or  under  the 
influence  of  private  friendship,  might  have  failed 
in  seeing  the  cause  in  a  true  light.  Such  fears 


72  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

were  groundless.  While  the  trial  was  conducted 
in  such  a  manner  as  to  allow  the  accused  every 
means  of  defence,  the  charge  to  the  jury  pointed 
out  in  such  clear  and  convincing  terms  the  char 
acter  of  the  offence,  that  no  hesitation  was  felt  in 
convicting  them.  In  awarding  the  punishment, 
Clinton  is  said  to  have  long  hesitated  whether  he 
were  not  called  upon  by  regard  to  justice  to  inflict 
the  disgrace  of  imprisonment  as  a  part.  Mature 
reflection  satisfied  him  that  every  desirable  end 
could  be  attained  by  the  imposition  of  a  fine ;  but 
this  was  imposed  in  an  address  conveying  such 
severe,  merited,  and  pointed  reprimand,  as  was 
well  calculated  to  prevent  the  recurrence  of  a 
similar  offence  by  any  parties  possessed  of  the 
feelings  of  honour  and  of  the  lofty  intelligence 
which  marked  those  who  had  thus  become  the 
subjects  of  his  censure. 

The  most  important  legal  question  which  came 
before  him  as  judge  of  the  criminal  court,  was  one 
having  regard  to  liberty  of  conscience.  A  Roman 
Catholic  priest  was  called  upon  to  disclose  what 
had  been  communicated  to  him  under  the  seal  of 
confession.  Clinton  on  this  occasion  sustained,  in 
opposition  to  British  decisions,  the  sanctity  of  that 
sacrament,  as  it  is  held  to  be  by  that  church,  and 
was  subsequently  mainly  instrumental  in  doing 
away,  by  legislative  action,  the  disabilities  to  which 
professors  of  the  Catholic  faith  were  still  subjected 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  73 

by  laws  and  practices  arising  from  British  statutes 
which  lay  unrepealed. 

Clinton,  as  chief  of  the  police  of  a  large  and 
populous  city,  appeared  to  no  less  advantage  than 
as  a  criminal  judge.  At  fires,  and  all  unusual  as 
semblages  where  disorder  might  be  apprehended, 
he  was  to  be  found,  not  to  repress  riots  actually 
begun,  but  in  time  to  prevent  their  occurrence. 
When  the  mere  majesty  of  the  law  appeared  to  be 
likely  to  be  insufficient,  he  took  early  and  prompt 
measures  to  have  at  his  disposal  a  sufficient  civic 
force,  and  for  calling  on  the  uniformed  companies 
as  a  reinforcement  in  case  of  need. 

As  an  instance  of  his  promptitude  in  such  cases, 
the  riot  in  James-street  may  be  cited.  This  had 
begun  in  boarding-houses  for  seamen;  and  that 
brave,  but  thoughtless  and  turbulent  race,  had  beat 
en  and  put  to  flight  the  police.  On  receiving  in 
telligence  of  the  fact,  Clinton,  after  making  pro 
vision  for  calling  out  the  troops,  hurried  to  the  spot 
attended  by  such  civil  officers  as  he  could  mus 
ter.  On  his  way  through  Chatham-street  he  met 
some  officers  of  the  fourth  regiment  of  militia, 
which  had  paraded  that  afternoon  at  Corlaer's 
Hook,  and  had  just  been  dismissed.  Collecting 
these  to  the  number  of  about  a  dozen,  he  formed 
them  in  a  line  across  the  street,  placed  the  band 
which  had  attended  the  regiment  behind  them, 
and,  ordering  it  to  play  a  charge,  led  the  way  to 


74    '  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

the  scene  of  riot.  The  mob,  aware  of  his  pres 
ence,  and  deceived  by  the  judicious  exhibition  of 
force  when  there  was  in  reality  none,  dispersed 
without  resistance,  and  the  leaders  were  captured. 
A  few  minutes'  delay  would  probably  have  ren 
dered  it  necessary  to  have  recourse  to  bloodshed. 
As  it  was,  he  gallantly  exposed  himself  to  no  lit 
tle  personal  risk. 

As  the  probability  of  a  war  with  Great  Britain 
increased,  those,  who  recollected  the  tumultuous 
scenes  of  the  breaking  out  of  the  Revolution,  when 
law  was  for  a  time  suspended  ;  who  had  heard 
threats  of  personal  violence  uttered  against  obnox 
ious  persons,  which  threats  were  not  always  vain ; 
and  particularly  those  who  had  themselves  suffer 
ed  from  the  cruelty  of  the  partisans  of  the  British 
government,  began  to  speak  openly  of  taking  the 
opportunity  of  the  breaking  out  of  hostilities  to 
gratify  their  long-suppressed  revenge.  Obnoxious 
persons  were  publicly  named,  and  their  houses 
marked  out  for  pillage.  In  this  juncture,  Clinton 
had  a  difficult  part  to  play.  He  was  a  candidate 
for  the  presidency  in  opposition  to  Madison,  while 
the  leaders  of  the  democratic  party  in  the  city  had 
espoused  the  cause  of  that  gentleman.  He  saw  in 
those  who  uttered  threats  his  old  associates  in  the 
democratic  party,  and  among  them  those  who  had 
influence  sufficient  either  to  denounce  him  or  secure 
him  its  support. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  75 

The  persons  thus  threatened  were  those  of  the 
old  Tory  faction,  who  had  never  joined  themselves 
to  the  democratic  party.  To  such  as  had,  free  im 
munity  was  granted.  By  the  slightest  neglect  of 
precautionary  measures,  Clinton  therefore  had  it  in 
his  power  to  conciliate  old  friends  and  prevent  a 
rupture  with  them,  as  well  as  to  punish  some  of 
his  most  active  political  opponents.  Clinton,  how 
ever,  had  too  high  a  regard  for  his  duty  to  slumber 
at  his  post.  No  sooner  had  the  slightest  symptoms 
of  popular  commotion  appeared,  than  he  took  the 
most  prompt  measures  to  preserve  the  public  peace. 
These  were  successful ;  but  they  had  the  effect  of 
utterly  estranging  from  him  the  managers  of  the 
party  with  which,  from  his  earliest  manhood,  he 
had  been  associated,  and  of  which  he  had  for 
years  been  the  acknowledged  leader.  As  he  could 
not  be  openly  blamed  for  preserving  the  quiet  of 
the  city,  he  was  accused  of  giving  rise  to  a  ground 
less  alarm ;  and  the  very  persons  who  pointed  out 
by  name  the  objects  of  their  attack,  were  now 
heard  declaring  that  no  intention  of  violence  or 
pillage  had  ever  been  entertained. 

In  the  earliest  years  of  his  mayoralty,  Clinton 
found  himself  compelled  to  exercise  the  duties  of 
a  diplomatist  in  addition  to  the  various  duties  with 
which  he  was  loaded.  The  renewal  of  the  war 
between  Great  Britain  and  France,  if  it  did  not 
give  rise  to  intrigues,  as  on  the  former  occasion, 

'-•'  W  '  :.-*;,, 


76  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

for  the  purpose  of  drawing  the  United  States  into 
the  contest  as  a  party,  placed  the  country  under 
the  necessity  of  asserting,  by  steady  and  impartial 
measures,  its  neutral  character.  The  French  had, 
at  the  breaking  out  of  hostilities,  an  army  and 
a  fleet  in  St.  Domingo.  In  attempting  to  with 
draw  this  force  in  the  face  of  the  superior  power 
of  Great  Britain,  single  vessels  and  squadrons 
touched  at  the  port  of  New- York.  Among  the 
rest,  two  fine  frigates  anchored  in  the  bay,  among 
whose  officers  was  Jerome  Bonaparte,  the  brother 
of  the  first  consul,  and  subsequently  King  of  West 
phalia.  The  cupidity  of  the  British  officers  on  the 
Halifax  station  was  increased  by  the  hopes  of  this 
rich  prize,  and  a  squadron  actually  entered  into  the 
bay  in  pursuit  of  them.  For  a  moment,  apprehen 
sions  were  entertained  that  our  waters  would  have 
been  the  scene  of  a  hostile  attack,  such  as  the 
British  afterward  made  the  Bay  of  Valparaiso. 
Clinton  permitted  the  French  vessels  to  anchor  un 
der  the  guns  of  Fort  Jay ;  and,  to  prevent  the 
breach  of  neutrality  consequent  on  the  French  ves 
sels  being  followed  out,  required  from  the  British 
commanders  a  promise  not  to  sail  until  24  hours 
after  the  French  vessels  should  have  proceeded  to 
sea.  On  this  being  refused,  he  issued  orders  to  the 
pilots  not  to  carry  them  to  sea.  In  consequence 
of  these  decisive  measures,  the  British  squadron 
left  the  anchorage  at  the  quarantine-ground,  and 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  77 

blockaded  the  harbour.  The  French  vessels  sub 
sequently  made  their  escape  through  the  Sound  : 
and  here  again  Clinton  was  compelled  to  interfere, 
by  directing  the  commander  of  Fort  Jay  to  allow 
them  to  enter  the  East  River.  Numerous  other 
aggressions  were  committed  by  British  cruisers, 
which,  on  more  than  one  occasion,  threatened  to 
lead  to  popular  tumults,  retaliating  on  British 
residents  the  offensive  acts  of  their  countrymen. 
Among  other  instances,  an  American  seaman  wTas 
killed  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  United  Sates 
by  a  shot  from  the  Leander. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  French  officers  exhibited 
a  spirit  as  little  consistent  with  regard  for  neutral 
rights  as  the  English,  although  they  had  less  gQW;- 
er  to  carry  it  into  effect.  Clinton  was  thus  in 
volved  in  correspondence  with  the  commercial 
agents  of  the  two  belligerant  nations  ;  compelled 
to  adopt  measures  of  military  opposition  to  their 
aggressions,  and,  at  the  same  time,  to  restrain  the 
popular  feeling.  His  course  on  this  occasion  is 
marked  with  dignity  and  decision,  and  his  corre 
spondence  exhibits  his  accustomed  ability. 


78  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Origin  of  the  Public  School  Society  of  New- 
York. — It  is  Chartered. — Is  founded  on  Private 
Contributions. — Clinton's  Agency  in  obtaining 
them.  —  Gift  from  the  Corporation  of  New- 
York,  and  Grant  from  the  State  Legislature. — 
Reflections  on  the  System  of  Common  Schools. 
— Turnpike  from  Poughkeepsie  to  Kingsbridge. 

WHILE  mayor  of  the  City  of  New- York,  Clin 
ton  took  the  lead  in  the  promotion  of  numerous  im 
portant  public  objects.  To  the  aid  of  these  he  not 
only  brought  his  talents  as  a  writer,  his  personal 
exertions,  and  the  whole  weight  of  his  political 
influence,  but  contributed,  when  necessary,  freely 
from  his  private  purse.  Among  these,  the  Free 
School  Association,  as  well  from  the  direct  and 
immediate  benefits  it  produced,  as  from  having 
been  the  first  step  towards  that  system  which  now 
includes  the  whole  state  in  its  beneficent  influence, 
is  most  worthy  of  notice. 

The  Lancasterian  method  of  instruction  was  ma 
king  a  great  noise  in  Europe,  and  excited,  in  par 
ticular,  the  attention  of  the  members  of  the  Society 
of  Friends.  In  the  year  1804,  two  influential  and 
benevolent  men  of  this  persuasion,  the  late  John 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  79 

Murray,  Jr.,  and  Thomas  Eddy,  conceived  the  idea 
of  introducing  that  method  into  the  City  of  New- 
York.  Clinton  was  immediately  consulted  by 
them,  and  saw  at  once  the  vast  amount  of  benefit 
which  might  be  derived  from  the  successful  intro 
duction  of  this  system.  He  therefore  drew  up  the 
plan  of  an  association,  for  the  purpose  of  providing 
gratuitous  instruction  for  such  poor  children  as 
did  not  fall  within  the  sphere  of  any  of  the  char 
ity  schools  then  existing  in  the  city.  In  the  list  of 
this  association  his  name  stands  first,  and  he  was 
its  first  presiding  officer. 

As  a  charter  was  necessary  to  ensure  success, 
preparations  were  made  for  applying  to  the  Legis 
lature  ;  and  Governor  Lewis  made  the  subject  a 
prominent  feature  of  his  message  in  January,  1805. 
With  wise  and  liberal  views,  he  went  beyond  the 
immediate  objects  of  the  association,  and  pointed 
out  to  the  Legislature  the  value  of  a  general  sys 
tem  of  common  schools,  backing  his  recommenda 
tion  by  the  authority  of  his  predecessor,  George 
Clinton. 

In  consequence  of  this  recommendation,  and  the 
personal  exertions  of  its  friends,  a  charter  was 
granted  in  April,  1805,  in  the  preamble  to  which, 
Clinton  is  named  as  having  applied  for  it.  No 
farther  legislative  aid  was  granted  at  the  time ;  and 
it  became  necessary,  in  order  to  carry  the  objects 
of  the  association  into  effect,  to  have  recourse  to 
G 


80  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

private  contributions.  In  the  labour  of  solicitation 
and  explanation  necessary  for  such  a  purpose,  and 
in  the  irksome  task  of  begging  from  door  to  door 
Clinton  took  more  than  his  share.  In  company 
with  Frederic  Depeyster,  another  of  the  associ 
ates,  he  called  personally  upon  many  of  the  citi 
zens,  and  did  not  cease  from  his  exertions  until  no 
more  funds  could  be  collected.  The  list  of  De 
peyster  and  Clinton  exhibited  subscriptions  to  the 
amount  of  $49 10.  , 

His  influence  with  the  corporation  of  the  city, 
over  whose  deliberations  he  then  presided,  was 
next  brought  into  action,  and  a  grant  of  an  old 
building,  formerly  used  as  an  arsenal,  with  a  dona 
tion  of  $2000  in  money,  wras  obtained. 

In  the  year  1806,  Clinton,  having  taken  his  seat 
in  the  Senate  of  the  state,  was  named  chairman  of 
a  committee  to  which  a  petition  of  the  Free-school 
Society  for  aid  wTas  referred.  In  this  capacity  he 
made  a  most  able  and  conclusive  report,  in  which 
the  importance  of  the  institution  to  the  public  was 
exhibited  in  so  clear  a  light,  that  a  bill  was  passed, 
by  wrhich  an  immediate  appropriation  of  $  12,000, 
with  an  annuity  of  $  1500  per  annum,  was  granted 
to  the  society. 

This  was  the  germ  of  the  public  schools  of  the 
city  of  New-York,  now  so  flourishing,  and  the  ba 
sis  on  which  the  great  system  of  common  schools 
throughout  the  state  was  founded.  The  success  of 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  81 

the  first  public  school  was  unexampled  in  training 
up  to  habits  of  industry  and  morality,  youth  who 
might  otherwise  have  fallen  into  idleness  and  vice. 
At  the  end  of  twenty  years  from  its  foundation,  it 
was  the  proud  boast  of  Clinton,  then  governor  of 
the  state,  in  a  message  to  the  Legislature,  that  out 
of  the  many  thousands  who  had  received  instruc 
tion  in  the  public  schools,  none  had  ever  been  con 
victed  of  a  criminal  offence. 

The  success  of  the  public  school  in  New-York 
led  to  its  speedy  imitation  in  Albany  and  Troy ; 
and  the  obvious  benefits  which  the  several  estab 
lishments  conferred  on  the  community,  furnished 
the  most  powerful  inducements  for  the  accumula 
tion  of  such  a  fund  as  might  spread  similar  advan 
tages  throughout  the  state.  It  is  unnecessary  to 
enter  into  an  exhibition  of  the  immense  value 
which  the  common  schools  have  been  to  the  State 
of  New-York.  Their  importance  is  admitted  on  all 
hands ;  and,  where  the  right  of  suffrage  is  univer 
sal,  the  only  security  for  liberty  is  to  be  found  in  an 
equally  universal  diffusion  of  the  blessings  of  edu 
cation.* 

The  common  school  system  has  not,  however, 

'f  The  basis  of  the  fund,  which  has  grown  to  such  an  extent, 
was  laid  in  the  session  of  1806,  by  a  legislative  grant  of  600,000 
acres  of  public  lands  ;  and  it  has  accumulated  from  this  and 
other  sources,  until  it  is  justly  doubted  whether  it  be  expedient 
to  increase  it  any  farther. 


8.2  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

yet  attained  that  degree  of  excellence  of  which  it 
is  capable,  and  there  are  certain  obvious  defects  in 
its  management  which  call  for  a  remedy. 

The  public  school  of  New- York  was  originally 
instituted  to  supply  a  positive  want.  The  several 
religious  congregations  had,  with  great  liberality, 
founded  free-schools,  erecting  buildings  and  pur 
chasing  land.  Those  of  the  Reformed  Dutch, 
Presbyterian,  and  Episcopal  churches  were  flour 
ishing,  although  far  from  being  sufficient  even  for 
those  in  their  respective  communions.  They  de 
rived  their  support  from  annual  collections.  The 
Catholics  had  also  commenced  a  similar  system; 
and,  although  possessed  of  less  comparative  wealth, 
exhibited  a  noble  spirit  of  liberality.  When  the 
school  fund  was  first  applied,  all  these  institutions 
received  support  from  it  in  the  ratio  of  the  num 
bers  of  their  respective  scholars,  and  a  generous 
emulation  ensued  to  raise  the  character  of  the  ed 
ucation  they  furnished,  as  by  this  alone,  in  most  of 
the  cases,  could  they  obtain  a  preference  from 
the  scholars. 

By  a  most  unfortunate  change,  the  whole  appro 
priation  was  vested  in  the  public  schools,  and  the 
support  afforded  by  it  to  those  of  the  several  Chris 
tian  denominations  withdrawn.  The  free-schools 
therefore  fell  back  to  their  original  state,  or  were 
abandoned  altogether.  Hundreds  of  active  and 
zealous  advocates  of  education  have  been  with- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  83 

drawn  from  the  cause,  and  the  public  schools  them 
selves  do  not  appear  to  have  derived  any  propor 
tionate  accession  in  numbers.  The  blow  has  fallen 
hardest  upon  the  Catholics.  The  children  of  this 
numerous  and,  unluckily,  as  a  mass,  ignorant  por 
tion  of  our  population,  are  thereby  debarred,  by 
scruples  of  conscience,  from  all  access  to  that 
education  for  which  they  are  taxed  in  proportion 
to  their  means.  In  mere  principle,  although  in 
amount  small,  the  hardship  is  as  great*  as  that 
which  some  of  them  have  fled  to  avoid  in  the 
country  of  their  nativity,  that  of  paying  for  the 
support  of  a  clergy  whose  ministry  they  repudiate. 
To  say  that  the  schools  are  open  to  their  children 
is  a  repetition  of  the  remark  that  the  Protestant 
churches  are  open  to  them  in  Ireland ;  their  con 
sciences  equally  prevent  their  entering  either. 

It  will  be  only  when  all  religious  feeling  can  be 
satisfied,  that  the  great  and  final  step  of  the  school 
system  can  be  taken,  namely,  to  render  it  penal  in 
any  parent  not  to  avail  himself  of  the  benefits  it 
holds  out  to  his  children.  Such  has  been  the  law 
for  centuries  in  Switzerland,  and  has  been  the  most 
efficient  cause  of  the  maintenance  of  its  free  insti 
tutions  while  in  actual  contact  with  the  most  pow 
erful  and  absolute  monarchies  of  Europe.  They 
have  been  supported  by  their  moral  strength,  long 
after  physical  resistance  would  have  ceased  to  de 
fend  them. 


84  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

So  far,  then,  from  withdrawing  the  benefits  of 
the  school  fund  from  sectarian  establishments,  all 
denominations  of  Christians  ought  to  be  encour 
aged  to  found  schools,  and  be  entitled,  as  formerly, 
to  a  proportionate  share  of  the  fund.  No  denom 
ination  can  except  to  this ;  for,  as  each  is  satisfied 
that  its  own  tenets  are  correct,  it  ought  to  be 
pleased  at  the  diffusion  of  that  intelligence  by 
which  its  orthodoxy  may  be  tested. 

Another  obvious  defect  in  the  system  is  its  en 
tire  separation  from  all  the  institutions  for  educa 
tion  of  a  higher  character.  It  thus  limits  those 
whose  parents  are  not  possessed  of  competence,  to 
the  very  elements  of  learning  ;  shuts  them  out  from 
all  the  learned  professions ;  and  debars  them  from 
all  chance  of  attaining  political  eminence  by  legit 
imate  means.  Under  the  aspect  of  the  purest  de 
mocracy,  it  lays  the  foundation  of  an  aristocracy 
of  learning,  into  which  the  children  of  the  rich 
alone  are  admitted. 

Those  who  are  conversant  with  the  workings 
of  the  two  systems,  are  aware  of  the  wide  and  im 
passable  barrier  which  separates  those  who  are  ed 
ucated  in  the  common  schools  from  those  who  find 
their  elementary  instruction  in  private  seminaries, 
and  subsequently  complete  their  courses  in  colleges. 
Feelings  of  contempt  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  envy 
on  the  other,  are  fostered  ;  and,  on  attaining  man 
hood,  the  youth  of  the  republic  are  obviously  ar 
rayed  in  two  distinct  and  almost  hostile  classes, 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  85 

In  order  that  the  common  school  system  should 
be  perfect,  it  ought,  as  might  readily  be  effected, 
to  give  an  elementary  education  superior  to  that  of 
any  private  school,  and  thus  make  it  the  interest 
even  of  the  richest  to  send  their  children  to  the 
public  schools.  It  should  next  be  brought  into 
the  closest  connexion  with  the  chartered  academies 
and  colleges,  by  giving,  as  a  reward  for  proficien 
cy  in  knowledge,  the  right  of  continuing  the  studies, 
begun  in  the  common  schools,  in  the  higher  semi 
naries.  Some  of  our  colleges  have,  with  great 
liberality,  tendered  free  scholarships  to  the  trustees 
of  the  public  schools ;  but  the  boon  has  not  produ 
ced  its  proper  result,  because  the  intermediate 
academies  are  inaccessible. 

It  is  only  in  this  way  that  a  proper  supply  of 
competent  teachers  for  the  common  schools  can  be 
obtained.  It  unluckily  happens,  that  the  profes 
sion  of  a  teacher  does  not  confer  a  standing  in  so 
ciety  which  will  compensate  for  its  trifling  emolu 
ment.  Teachers  in  the  State  of  New-York^  will 
alone  be  found  among  those  who  are  preparing 
themselves  for  professions  of  a  character  more  re 
spected  by  the  community,  or  who  may  have  been 
unsuccessful  in  such  professions.  The  youth  whose 
talents  will  fit  him  for  a  teacher,  will  not  consent 
that  an  occupation,  whose  professors  he  sees  al 
most  loaded  with  indignity,  shall  be  the  limit  of 
his  wishes.  We  therefore  can  anticipate  no  good 


86  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

result  from  the  establishment  of  separate  schools  for 
teachers;  but,  if  the  talented  and  industrious  mem 
bers  of  the  common  schools  be  passed  to  the  acad 
emies,  and  the  most  distinguished  of  them,  in  turn, 
to  the  colleges,  many  seeking  knowledge  with 
more  ambitious  views,  would,  in  the  very  nature 
of  things,  fall  into  the  body  of  teachers* 

From  the  Jime  that  he  became  an  associate  and 
the  first  president  of  the  Public  School  Society  of 
New-York,  Clinton  was  unwearied  in  his  labours 
to  promote  the  cause  of  education.  As  mayor  of 
the  city,  as  senator,  and  as  governor  of  the  state, 
he  made  every  fair  use  of  the  influence  of  his  sta 
tion  to  increase  the  school  fund  and  extend  its 
benefits.  Standing  almost  alone  at  first,  he  was 
joined  in  the  end  by  such  numbers,  and  the  influ 
ence  finally  became  so  powerful,  as  to  overleap 
the  bounds  he  would  himself  have  set  to  it,  and  to 
monopolize  patronage,  of  which  a  part  might  have 
been  extended,  with  greater  public  benefit,  to  insti 
tutions  of  more  elevated  character.  Thus,  while 
the  school  system  has  been  so  successful  that  one 
fourth  of  the  whole  numerical  population  is  inclu 
ded  in  the  lists  of  its  pupils,  the  number  of  incor 
porated  academies  has  not  increased,  nor  that  of 
the  scholars  who  attend  them.  This  has  reacted 
upon  the  common  schools  themselves,  by  render 
ing  it  impossible  to  procure  a  sufficient  number  of 
competent  teachers. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  87 


Th^_cornmunijcatiQJi^  ihe  cities  o 

York  and  Albany,  so  easy  while  the  Hudson  River 
is  open,  is,  during  the  winter,  extremely  difficult. 
This  attracted  the  attention  of  Clinton;  and  a  peti 
tion,  drawn  and  headed  by  him,  was  presented  to 
the  legislature  in  the  year  1805,  for  the  incorpora 
tion  of  the  Highland  Turnpike  Co.,  to  make  a 
road  from  Poughkeepsie  to  Kingsbridge.  The 
charter  was  granted,  and  funds  nearly  adequate 
"to  ITie  ;  purpose  were  raised.  By  mismanagement 
on  the  part  of  the  directors,  they  were  exhausted 
before  the  most  difficult  part  of  the  road  was  com 
pleted.  Still,  the  travel  in  winter  on  the  east  side  of 
the  Hudson,  which  was  formerly  attended  with 
great  danger,  has,  since  the  passage  of  that  act, 
been  rendered  more  easy  and  safe.  This  was  all 
that  the  state  of  the  times  and  of  the  art  of  engi 
neering  would  permit.  Had  Clinton  been  now 
living,  and  possessed  of  the  influence  he  then  ex 
erted,  we  should  probably,  ere  this,  have  seen  our 
commercial  metropolis  united  with  the  seat  of 
government  by  a  railroad.  The  same  enlighten 
ed  policy  which  dictated  the  construction  of  the 
Erie  Canal  in  1807,  would  have  urged  the  neces 
sity  of  this  measure  at  the  public  cost,  and  would 
not  have  left  the  southwestern  tier  of  counties  to 
seek  an  outlet  to  the  market  of  New-York  through 
the  imperfect  and  ineffectual  method  of  a  chartered 
company,  which,  if  unsuccessful,  would  be  a  total 

H 


88  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

waste  of  capital,  and  if  successful,  an  odious  mo 
nopoly.  The  circumstances  of  the  times  in  which 
he  lived  did  not  call  for  any  exposition  of  his 
views  on  such  subjects  to  the  citizens  of  our  own 
state,  but  the  arguments  he  addressed  to  the  in 
habitants  of  New-Jersey  and  Ohio  contain  much 
practical  wisdom,  which  is  exactly  suited  to  the 
present  state  of  affairs  in  New-York. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  89 


CHAPTER  VII 

Clinton  is  elected  a  Member  of  the  State  Senate. 
— Incorporation  of  the  Sailors'  Snug  Harbour. 
— Law  removing  the  Incapacities  of  Roman 
Catholics. — Charter  of  the  Manumission  Socie 
ty  >  °f  the  Cincinnati. — Grant  for  an  Insane 
Hospital. — Charter  of  the  Eagle  Fire  Insurance 
Company. — Grant  for  the  Defence  of  the  Har 
bour  of  New-York. — Academy  of  Fine  Jirts 
Incorporated. — Clinton  is  named  a  Director,  and 
subsequently  President  of  the  Jlcademy. — Char 
ter  of  the  American  Fur  Company. — Burial  of 
the  Remains  of  the  Prisoners  in  the  Jersey 
Hulk. 

AT  the  election  held  in  1805,  Clinton  was 
chosen  a  Senator  of  the  state  for  the  Southern 
District,  which  office  he  held  along  with  that  of 
mayor  of  the  city  of  New- York.  The  Legislature, 
as  usual,  was  not  convened  until  1806,  when  he 
took  his  seat.  We  have  already  had  occasion  to 
speak  of  his  acts  in  this  capacity  in  reference  to 
the  Public  School  Society  of  New- York.  This 
was  far  from  being  the  only  important  object 
which  engaged  his  attention  and  received  his  sup 
port.  From  the  first  moment  of  his  entering  that 


90  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

body,  he  took  a  decided  lead  in  its  deliberations, 
and  furnished  the  draught  of  many  of  the  laws 
which  originated  in  the  upper  house.  Some  of 
these  are  even  yet  of  interest,  and  require  a  notice 
from  us,  which  we  shall  give  in  order. 

A  benevolent  individual  of  the  name  of  Ran 
dall,  had,  by  will,  bequeathed  a  property,  which 
has  now  become  of  immense  value,  to  trustees,  for 
the  purpose  of  establishing  an  hospital  for  seamen, 
under  the  name  of  the  "  Sailors'  Snug  Harbour." 
His  heirs,  if  any  could  be  found,  were  certainly 
foreigners ;  and  thus,  if  the  will  were  void,  the  real 
estate  conveyed  in  it  must  have  escheated  to  the 
state.  It  appeared  possible  that  the  bequest  might 
be  rendered  null,  from  the  fact  that  the  will  had 
the  air  of  creating  a  corporation,  by  vesting  the  es 
tate  in  a  permanent  body,  composed  of  certain  of 
ficial  personages,  and  not  in  individual  trustees. 
Other  legal  difficulties  stood  in  the  way,  which 
also  required  legislative  action.  Under  the  con 
viction  that  the  bequest  would  be  of  great  public 
benefit,  Clinton  introduced  a  bill  conferring  cor 
porate  powers  on  the  trustees  named  in  the  will, 
and  thus  removing  all  doubts  as  to  the  title  to  the 
property.  This  corporation,  after  having  carefully 
nursed  its  property  for  several  years,  has  at  last 
been  enabled  to  carry  into  effect  the.  intentions  of 
its  founder;  and  the  name  of  Clinton  might,  with 
propriety,  be  placed  alongside  of  that  of  Randall, 


BEWITT     CLINTON.  91 

as  having  secured  the  application  of  his  legacy  to 
its  intended  object. 

Under  the  royal  government  of  the  colony  of 
New- York,  certain  laws  had  been  passed  intend 
ed  to  prevent  the  settlement  of  Roman  Catho 
lics,  or,  at  least,  debarring  them  from  the  privilege 
of  voting.  These  disqualifications  still  existed ;  for 
the  forms  of  abjuration  intended  to  operate  against 
Jesuit  missionaries  were  retained  at  the  revolution 
as  a  security  against  those  who  were  unwilling  to 
disavow  their  allegiance  to  the  King  of  England. 
By  the  exertions  of  Clinton,  a  law  drawn  by  him 
self  was  passed,  which  repealed  the  provision  of 
fensive  to  the  conscience  of  Roman  Catholics. 

An  association  for  promoting  the  manumission 
of  slaves  had  existed  for  several  years  in  the  city 
of  New-York,  but  had  not  obtained  a  charter. 
An  act  of  incorporation  was  now  introduced  by 
Clinton  and  passed.  He  also  drew  and  intro 
duced  a  bill  to  charter  the  Society  of  the  Cincin 
nati.  This  association  of  the  officers  of  the  revo 
lutionary  army  had  been  held  together  by  the 
mere  consent  of  its  members,  and  is  still  prevented 
from  fulfilling,  in  a  beneficial  manner,  the  char 
itable  objects  of  its  institution.  It  had  at  one 
time  been  held  up  to  the  public  as  an  attempt  to 
found  an  order  of  nobility,  and  had  been  stigma 
tized  as  aristocratic;  although,  in  fact,  no  more 
than  an  association  for  social  and  benevolent  pur- 


92  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

poses.  So  great  was  the  prejudice  which  had 
been  excited  against  it  by  these  gratuitous  attacks, 
that  it  does  not  appear  probable  that  any  member 
of  the  democratic  party,  except  Clinton,  would 
have  had  the  courage  to  propose  that  it  should  be 
incorporated. 

The  attempt  to  obtain  a  charter  for  this  honour 
able  and  praiseworthy  association  failed;  for  even 
the  influence  of  Clinton,  and  his  entire  possession 
of  the  confidence  of  the  democratic  party,  were 
insufficient  to  overcome  the  feelings  of  distrust 

o 

with  which  it  was  regarded. 

It  is  thus  a  curious  feature  in  the  records  of 
our  legislative  proceedings,  that,  while  the  natives 
of  every  European  country  which  has  furnished 
any  large  number  of  settlers  have  been  incorpora 
ted  by  charter  for  mutual  relief  and  for  keeping 
up  the  recollections  of  their  fatherlands,  with  the 
provision  for  continuing  the  privilege  to  their  chil 
dren,  the  officers  of  that  army  by  which  the  inde 
pendence  of  our  country  had  been  achieved  should 
be  denied  a  charter.  Those  who  opposed  the  as 
sociation  at  its  beginning  feared  that  the  feelings 
of  gratitude  so  justly  due  to  those  who  had  spent 
their  blood,  their  fortunes,  and  the  prime  of  their 
life  in  the  revolutionary  contest,  might  have  in 
vested  them  and  their  descendants  with  the  influ 
ence  of  an  order  of  nobility;  but  they  did  not 
foresee  that  in  this  case,  at  least,  America  was  to 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  93 

furnish  no  exception  to  the  proverbial  ingratitude 
of  republics. 

Up  to  the  year  1806,  the  State  of  New-York 
had  possessed  no  hospital  for  the  treatment  of  in 
sane  patients.  The  severest  infliction  with  which 
the  human  race  is  visited  had  its  victims  thus  ex 
posed  to  unnecessary  restraints  and  cruel  inflic 
tions.  The  trustees  of  the  Hospital  in  the  city  of 
New- York  now  applied  to  the  Legislature  for  aid 
in  effecting  the  humane  object  of  providing  an 
asylum  for  the  lunatic.  The  petition  was  referred 
by  the  Senate  to  a  committee,  of  which  Clinton  was 
chairman.  He  made  a  report,  in  which  the  neces 
sity  of  legislative  assistance  was  forcibly  set  forth, 
and,  in  conformity  with  the  report,  grants  were 
made,  which  enabled  the  trustees  of  the  Hospital 
to  erect  and  support  an  asylum  for  the  insane. 
By  means  of  this  grant,  a  splendid  and  commo 
dious  building  has  been  erected  at  Bloomingdale, 
where  it  stands  as  a  monument  of  the  wise  benefi 
cence  of  the  Legislature. 

Among  the  scourges  to  which  the  City  of  New- 
York  has  been  exposed,  one  of  the  most  destruc 
tive  is  fire.  The  inflammable  nature  of  the  mate 
rials  employed  in  building,  together  with  the  ne 
cessity  of  providing  against  the  severity  of  our 
winter  climate,  has  made  conflagrations  of  fre 
quent  occurrence  and  destructive  violence.  The 
system  of  mutual  assurance  had  been  adopted  as 


94  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

a  partial  remedy,  but  the  more  economic  mode  of 
ensuring  at  a  fixed  premium  could  at  that  time  be 
only  effected  through  the  agency  of  a  company 
established  in  London.  The  public  convenience 
called  loudly  for  a  local  institution,  which  should 
undertake  this  important  and  useful  business.  The 
main  difficulty  was  to  find  persons  of  sufficient 
capital  who  would  be  willing  to  become  liable 
to  the  full  extent  of  their  property  in  a  business  of 
so  great  a  risk ;  and  there  wras,  as  yet,  no  instance 
of  the  business  having  been  conducted  by  a  char 
ter,  under  which  the  associates  would  be  liable 
only  to  the  extent  of  their  subscriptions.  To  meet 
the  case,  Clinton,  at  the  request  of  a  number  of 
respectable  inhabitants  of  New-York,  drew,  and 
procured  the  passage  of,  the  charter  of  the  Eagle 
Insurance  Company.  This  has  since  served  as 
the  model  for  the  incorporation  of  a  number  of 
other  companies,  which  have  been  of  great  benefit 
to  the  community,  and  yielded  good  profit  to  their 
stockholders,  until,  after  the  lapse  of  30  years  from 
the  establishment  of  the  first,  their  capitals  w^ere 
swept  away  by  the  great  conflagration  of  Decem 
ber,  1835.  Even  then  they  were  the  means  of 
preserving  many  of  the  mercantile  community 
from  entire  destruction. 

The  difficulties  of  which  we  have  spoken,  which 
arose  from  the  acts  of  British  and  French  cruisers, 
were  in  a  great  measure  owing  to  the  exposed 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  95 

i 

condition  of  the  Bay  of  New-York.  The  only 
work  of  any  consequence  provided  by  the  general 
government  for  its  defence  was  Fort  Jay,  on  Gov 
ernor's  Island.  The  city  was  in  a  measure  safe  from 
aggression,  except  by  a  strong  force,  by  batteries 
on  the  water's  edge,  but  the  safe  anchorage  at  the 
Watering-place  was  wholly  exposed.  Here  the 
British  actually  impressed  seamen,  and  the  French 
broke  by  force  the  sanitary  regulations  of  the  quar 
antine  ;  while,  as  we  have  seen,  fears  were  enter 
tained  that  an  attack  would  have  been  made  on 
vessels  under  the  very  guns  of  Fort  Jay.  The 
general  government  showed  a  culpable  negligence 
in  respect  to  this  question.  The  importance  of 
New-York  in  a  military  and  commercial  light,  has, 
in  general,  rather  excited  the  jealousy  of  other 
states  than  led  to  liberal  measures  for  its  protec 
tion.  It  was  obvious  that  it  was  only  by  fortifica 
tions  at  the  Narrows  that  security  from  the  unpun 
ished  violation  of  our  interior  waters  could  be  ob 
tained.  To  this  object  Clinton  turned  his  atten 
tion,  and  drew  up  an  able  report  on  the  defence 
of  the  harbour  of  New- York.  This  was  present 
ed  by  him  to  the  Senate,  and  led  to  the  passage,  in 
1808,  of  an  act  containing  an  appropriation  of 
$100,000  for  the  defence  of  that  important  pass. 

Military  critics  have  since  found  fault  with  the 
selection  of  the  position  where  this  fortification 
was  erected.  In  this  criticism  they  have  forgotten 


96  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

the  object  for  which  it  was  erected,  which  was  to 
command  and  cover  the  Watering-place  and  Quar 
antine  ground,  not  to  attempt  the  much  more  diffi 
cult  task  of  closing  the  Narrows  to  the  entrance  of 
a  foreign  fleet.  For  the  first  of  these  objects,  the 
position  chosen  is  sufficient,  and  the  only  one  that 
is  so ;  while,  in  the  second,  it  forms  an  essential 
and  all-important  feature.  The  occupation  of 
Staten  Island  in  such  a  manner  that  it  cannot  be 
easily  seized  by  an  enemy,  is,  besides,  a  most  im 
portant  object  in  the  defence  of  the  City  of  New- 
York.  It  formed,  in  1776,  a  species  of  tete  de  pont, 
in  which  the  British  forces  were  quietly  collected 
as  they  dropped  in  from  a  long  voyage,  and  where 
they  were  organized  and  recruited  in  health  for 
their  final  attack  through  Long  Island. 

In  the  commission  named  for  fortifying  the  Nar 
rows,  Clinton's  name  appears,  and  he  filled  an  im 
portant  place  in  its  deliberations,  although  the  de 
tails  of  the  fortifications  themselves  necessarily  fell 
to  the  charge  of  the  chief-engineer  of  the  United 
States,  General  Williams. 

As  early  as  1801,  an  association  had  been  form 
ed  in  the  City  of  New-York  for  the  encourage 
ment  of  the  fine  arts.  Liberal  contributions  had 
been  made  by  individuals,  and  a  fine  collection  of 
casts  from  the  antique  had  been  procured.  In  ad 
dition,  Vanderlyn  had  been  employed  to  make 
copies  of  some  of  the  best  pictures  in  the  Louvre, 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  97 

while  Napoleon,  at  that  time  First  Consul  of  France, 
had  presented,  through  Chancellor  Livingston,  a 
splendid  collection  of  engravings.  The  institution 
had  languished  for  want  of  a  local  habitation,  and 
its  administration  was  impeded  by  the  want  of  le 
gal  facilities.  Clinton  now  took  this  institution  un 
der  his  protection.  He  obtained  a  charter  for  it,  and 
a  grant  of  apartments  in  the  Government  House. 
This  building  had  been  erected  on  the  site  of  Fort 
George,  for  the  residence  of  the  chief  magistrate 
of  the  state,  but  had  become  useless  in  consequence 
of  the  removal  of  the  seat  of  government.  In 
the  apartments  thus  granted,  the  casts  and  pictures 
were  arranged  and  opened  to  the  public ;  and,  al 
though  they  excited  but  little  notice  at  the  time, 
their  influence  was  felt  in  the  formation  of  public 
taste,  and  gradually  extended  itself,  until  the  City 
of  New-York  has  assumed  a  high  rank  both  for 
the  patronage  and  the  practice  of  the  fine  arts. 

Clinton  was  named  a  director  of  the  Academy 
in  the  charter,  and  continued  to  hold  that  office 
by  annual  election  until  the  death  of  Chancellor 
Livingston,  who  was  the  founder  and  the  first 
president.  He  was  then  elected  president  of  the 
Academy,  which  office  he  held  for  several  years, 
but,  with  great  judgment,  permitted  the  active 
duties  of  that  station  to  be  performed  chiefly  by 
Colonel  Trumbull,  who  was  so  well  fitted,  from 
his  reputation  as  an  artist,  to  hold  the  first  rank  in 


98  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

such  an  institution.  This  institution,  after  fulfilling 
its  object,  has  given  way  to  an  association  of  ar 
tists  formed  in  its  schools. 

The  Fur-trade  of  the  West  had  been  monopoli 
zed  in  a  great  degree  by  British  subjects.  These 
had  spread  their  posts  far  to  the  south  into  the 
American  territory,  and  could  not  be  met  on  fair 
terms  of  competition  for  want  of  united  action  on  the 
part  of  the  American  traders.  Mr.  Astor,  so  cel 
ebrated  for  his  extended  and  comprehensive  views 
of  commerce,  was  willing  to  apply  his  own  capital 
and  talents  to  the  important  object  of  recovering 
this  valuable  trade  from  a  rival,  and  soon  to  be 
a  hostile  nation.  From  the  general  government, 
however,  under  a  strict  construction  of  the  consti 
tution,  he  could  not  obtain  the  necessary  powers 
wherewith  to  found  a  company ;  but  as  New-York 
would  be  the  place  of  shipment  and  the  necessary 
centre  of  operations,  a  charter  from  this  state  was 
considered  by  him  as  adequate  to  the  purpose. 
He  therefore  petitioned  the  Legislature  for  an  act 
of  incorporation.  This  was  drawn  by  Clinton, 
and  by  his  exertions  it  became  a  law.  Since  that 
time  the  American  Fur  Company  has  not  only 
been  a  profitable  concern  to  its  stockholders,  and 
thus  added  to  the  general  wealth,  but  has  been  of 
great  value  to  the  country.  It  has  excluded  the 
foreign  influence,  which  had  extended  itself  over 
the  savages  within  our  own  borders,  and  has  done 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  99 

more  than  arms  to  preserve  the  peace  of  an  expo 
sed  frontier,  and  render  the  pioneers  of  civilization 
safe  in  their  adventurous  pursuits. 

During  the  Revolutionary  war,  the  prisoners  ta 
ken  by  the  British  army,  as  well  as  many  persons 
seized  under  a  charge  of  treason,  had  been  confi 
ned  in  a  hulk  anchored  in  the  Wallabout  Bay. 
The  miseries  of  these  floating  prisons  have  been  a 
fruitful  theme  of  complaint  on  the  part  of  all  na 
tions  who  have  been  engaged  in  war  with  Great 
Britain.  Security  seems  to  have  been  the  only  ob 
ject  in  view,  unless  the  demoniac  pleasure  of 
lessening  the  number  of  enemies  by  a  lingering 
death  can  be  believed  to  have  existed.  The  suf 
ferings  which  have  in  all  cases  attended  confine 
ment  in  British  prison-ships,  were  aggravated  on 
this  occasion  by  the  nature  of  the  contest,  and 
the  fact  that  the  jailers  were  in  most  instances 
rather  political  opponents  of  the  prisoners,  who 
sought  to  compel  them  to  abandon  their  principles 
than  public  and  honourable  enemies.  Whatever 
may  have  been  the  cause,  the  mortality  in  that 
vessel  was  unexampled,  and  the  corses  of  the 
unfortunate  sufferers  were  hardly  treated  with  the 
ceremony  of  a  handful  of  earth  to  protect  their 
putrefying  remains  from  the  public  gaze.  For 
nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century,  the  unburied  bones 
of  these  martyrs  to  their  principles  remained  the 
reproach  of  their  tyrannical  destroyers  and  the 


100  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

disgrace  of  their  ungrateful  countrymen.  Clinton 
felt  the  latter  in  no  small  degree ;  and,  to  remove 
the  blot  on  the  national  fame,  proposed  a  law  for 
giving  burial  honours  to  the  remains.  This  was 
passed,  and  was  carried  into  effect.  Unluckily,  in 
its  execution,  an  attempt  was  made  to  give  it  a 
party  character,  and  to  employ  it  in  arousing  or 
perpetuating  a  feeling  of  hostility  to  Great  Britain. 
All  those  who  doubted  the  policy  of  entering  into 
a  war  with  that  country,  were  therefore  debarred 
from  uniting  in  the  ceremony;  and,  by  a  want  of 
ordinary  good  taste  in  the  committee  of  arrange 
ments,  what  wras  meant  to  honour  the  worthy 
dead  overpassed  the  step  which  separates  the  sub 
lime  from  the  ridiculous.  No  error  of  manage 
ment,  however,  can  do  away  the  merit  of  the  suf 
ferers,  or  detract  from  the  feeling  which  influenced 
Clinton  in  proposing  due  honours  to  their  unburied 
remains. 


PEWI-TT     CLINTON.  101 


CHAPTER  VIE. 

Important  Laws  drawn  by  Clinton  while  Senator. 
— His  Opinions  as  a  Member  of  the  Court  of 
Errors. — He  Receives  a  Challenge  for  words 
spoken  in  Debate. — His  Manly  and  Dignified 
Conduct  on  that  Occasion. — Attempt  at  Corrup 
tion  in  obtaining  the  Charter  of  a  Bank. 

\ 
CLINTON  continued  to  be  a  Senator  of  the  State 

until  1811,  when  he  was  elected  lieutenant-gov 
ernor,  and  thus  called  to  preside  over  the  deliber 
ations  of  the  body  of  which  he  had  so  long  been 
a  member.  We  have  already  seen  that  he  was 
the  mover,  and  influential  in  procuring  the  pas 
sage,  of  many  important  acts.  Among  others, 
which  were  also  drawn  by  him,  and  which  are  of 
sufficient  moment  to  be  recorded,  are : 

An  Act  to  provide  for  a  State  Arsenal. 

An  Act  relative  to  the  fortifications  erecting  by 
the  state. 

An  Act  for  laying  out  Canal-street  in  the  city 
of  New-York. 

An  Act  respecting  a  digest  of  the  public  laws 
of  the  state. 

An  Act  to  enlarge  the  powers  of  the  Orphan 
Asylum  Society. 


102  AMERICAN    B  I O  G  n  A  P  H  Y. 

An  Act  to  amend  the-  insolvent  la,ws. 

An  Act  to  prevent  the  inhuman  treatment  of 
slaves. 

An  Act  to  prevent  the  farther  introduction  of 
slaves. 

An  Act  for  the  support  of  the  Quarantine  estab 
lishment. 

An  Act  to  incorporate  the  New-York  Mission 
ary  Society. 

An  Act  to  revise  and  amend  the  militia  laws. 

An  Act  to  incorporate  the  society  for  the  relief 
of  poor  widows  with  small  children. 

An  Act  for  promoting  medical  science. 

An  Act  respecting  the  Free-school  Society. 

An  Act  for  the  partition  of  Haerlem  Commons. 

An  Act  concerning  the  Onondago  Salt-springs. 

An  Act  for  the  farther  encouragement  of  free- 
schools. 

An  Act  for  the  better  protection  of  sheep. 

An  Act  securing  to  mechanics  and  others  pay 
ment  for  their  labour  and  materials  in  the  city  of 
New-York. 

An  Act  to  establish  a  register's  office  in  the 
city  of  New- York. 

An  Act  to  set  apart  certain  apartments  in  the 
Capitol  for  public  purposes. 

An  Act  for  the  benefit  of  the  Orphan  Asylum 
(by  which  an  annuity  of  $500  was  granted  out  of 
the  auction  duties). 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  103 

An  Act  to  prevent  abuses  in  actions  de  homine 
replegiando. 

An  Act  for  abolishing  the  Court  of  Exchequer. 

An  Act  to  prevent  frauds  at  elections. 

An  Act  to  incorporate  the  Humane  Society. 

In  introducing  several  of  the  bills  which  be 
came  the  foregoing  laws,  Clinton  presented  able 
and  luminous  reports,  or  prefaced  the  propositions 
with  powerful  speeches.  He  also  drew,  on  several 
occasions,  the  answer  of  the  Senate  to  the  speech 
es  of  the  governor.  In  one  of  these,  presented  in 
1810,  is  to  be  found  one  of  the  best  arguments  in 
favour  of  our  republican  institutions,  with  an  eulo- 
gium  on  the  excellence  of  that  system  of  govern 
ment  "which  recognises  the  people  as  the  source, 
and  their  happiness  as  the  object  of  all  legitimate 
authority." 

On  the  retirement  of  Jefferson  from  the  office 
of  president,  an  address  was  voted  to  him  by  the 
Legislature  of  New- York,  which  measure  was 
proposed,  and  the  address  drawn  by  Clinton. 

In  addition  to  the  acts  which  have  been  cited, 
he  drew  and  procured  the  passage  of  others  in 
encouragement  of  literary  and  scientific  objects,  as 
well  as  others  in  reference  to  internal  improve 
ments,  on  which  subject  he  also  wrote  and  pre 
sented  reports.  We  have  omitted  these  for  the 
present,  as  we  shall  have  occasion  hereafter  to 
examine  his  agency  in  the  cause  of  science,  and 

I 


104  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

his  services  in  promoting  our  system  of  internal 
improvement  more  at  length. 

The  Senate,  with  the  chancellor  of  the  State 
and  the  judges  of  the  Supreme  Court,  formed,  and 
still  form,  a  tribunal  of  ultimate  resort,  under  the 
name  of  the  Court  of  Errors.  This  tribunal  is  of 
great  value  among  our  institutions,  as  it  not  only 
furnishes  the  means  of  cool  and  deliberate  adjudi 
cation  in  points  of  law,  but,  from  its  mixed  char 
acter,  affords  a  means  of  correcting  so  much  of 
the  common  law  as,  by  the  progress  of  society, 
becomes  unsuited  to  the  existing  state  of  things, 
and  of  substituting  principles  of  broad  and  univer 
sal  application  for  the  mere  technicalities  of  legal 
forms.  In  the  deliberations  of  this  tribunal  Clin 
ton  bore  an  important  share. 

As  early  as  1802,  when  serving  for  his  first  term 
in  the  Senate  of  the  state,  he  delivered  an  opinion 
on  a  most  important  question,  and  settled  the  law 
on  that  subject.  The  trade  of  the  United  States 
had  become  an  object  of  pillage  to  both  belliger- 
ants,  and  this  pillage  was  legalized  by  the  decis 
ions  of  petty  admiralty  courts,  which  rarely  failed 
to  find  pretences  for  condemnation.  The  mer 
chants  sought  protection  by  insurances  at  exorbi 
tant  premiums,  but  were  likely  to  derive  no  ad 
vantage  from  this  precaution.  The  English  judges 
had  decided  that  the  decrees  of  admiralty  courts 
were  not  open  to  revision;  and  thus,  when  the  as- 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  105 

signed  cause  of  condemnation  was  not  among  the 
risks  expressed  or  implied  in  the  policy,  the  suf 
ferer  would  have  had  no  redress  had  this  princi 
ple  been  adopted  as  a  part  of  the  common  law 
of  the  State  of  New-York.  The  inferior  tribunals, 
governed  by  the  English  decisions,  refused  to  in 
quire  whether  the  assigned  cause  of  condemnation 
were  true  or  false;  and,  as  such  pretended  cause 
was  of  course  one  which  was  inconsistent  with  an 
observance  of  neutrality,  the  policies  could  not 
have  been  recovered. 

When  these  questions  came  before  the  Court  of 
Errors,  it  decided  that  the  decisions  of  courts  of 
admiralty  were,  like  those  of  other  tribunals,  open 
to  examination.  The  very  act  of  pillage  and  op 
pression,  which  had  before  been  a  bar  to  the  re 
covery  of  the  loss,  was  thus  made  a  risk  which 
could  be  covered  by  insurance.  The  proceedings 
in  the  American  courts  under  this  decision  could 
be  made  the  grounds  of  a  claim  for  indemnity  to 
the  underwriters  from  the  foreign  government ;  and 
this  opinion  of  Clinton's  has,  after  the  lapse  of  up 
ward  of  thirty  years,  been  the  direct  cause  of  a  claim 
being  successfully  urged  against  the  French  gov 
ernment  for  the  spoliations  committed  by  Napo 
leon.  Had  the  American  courts  of  law  admitted, 
even  by  implication,  the  justice  of  the  decrees  of 
the  admiralty  tribunals,  it  must  have  been  a  bar  to 
any  redress,  except  in  the  small  list  of  cases  in 


106  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

which  even  the  mockery  of  legal  process  had 
been  dispensed  with.  In  the  negotiations  which 
continued  for  so  long  a  time  before  redress  was 
obtained,  the  French  diplomatists  drew,  on  this 
very  ground,  a  broad  distinction  between  the  two 
sets  of  cases ;  and,  could  they  have  supported  their 
argument  by  the  adjudication  of  American  tribu 
nals,  it  is  not  difficult  to  believe  that  all  indemnity 
would  have  been  refused.  In  this  decision,  there 
fore,  Clinton  not  only  conferred  an  immediate 
benefit  on  the  mercantile  community,  but  paved 
the  way  for  the  indemnification  of  the  underwri 
ters. 

In  1807  another  case  of  great  importance  to  the 
merchant  was  decided  in  the  Court  of  Errors.  In 
this  Clinton  delivered  the  opinion  concurred  in  by 
the  majority  of  the  court,  in  opposition  to  the 
views  of  the  judges.  At  that  time  American  citi 
zens  were  permitted  to  own  vessels,  which,  from 
being  of  foreign  build,  or  having  lost  their  nation 
al  character  by  capture  and  condemnation,  were 
not  entitled  to  be  registered.  To  secure  such 
property  from  capture,  the  executive  of  the  Uni 
ted  States  had  directed  the  officers  of  the  customs 
to  furnish  them  with  papers  under  the  name  of 
sea-letters.  A  law  of  Congress  had  subsequently 
enacted,  that  the  evidence  of  ownership  should 
be  afforded  by  a  paper  called  a  passport.  In  the 
practice  of  the  custom-house,  the  papers  furnished 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  107 

first  under  the  executive  instructions,  and  subse 
quently  under  the  laws,  were  made  identical. 
Thus,  while  the  mercantile  community  continued 
to  call  the  document  a  sea-letter,  the  custom-house 
issued  it  under  the  law  authorizing  the  granting  of 
passports.  In  a  case  arising  out  of  this  confusion  of 
terms,  Clinton  led  the  decision  of  the  Court  of  Er 
rors  by  an  opinion  in  which  the  broad  principles 
of  justice  triumphed  over  the  narrow  views  of  le 
gal  interpretation. 

During  the  same  session,  a  case  arose  involving 
the  nicest  technicalities  of  special  pleading ;  and 
here  Clinton  exhibited  as  much  knowledge  of  the 
logic  of  legal  argument,  as  he  had,  in  the  former 
case,  shown  of  the  basis  of  natural  right  on  which 
alone  laws  ought  to  be  founded. 

An  estate  of  great  value  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  New-York,  left  by  Nicholas  Cruger  to  his  heirs, 
had  unluckily  become  the  subject  of  litigation. 
The  widow  had  married  again,  and  his  children  by 
a  former  marriage  naturally  felt  indignant  at  see 
ing  the  property  of  their  father  likely  to  be  thus 
diverted  to  strangers  to  his  blood.  The  case  was 
involved  in  great  difficulty,  in  consequence  of  one 
of  the  largest  pieces  of  the  real  estate  having  been 
leased  for  the  term  of  two  joint  lives  and  that  of 
the  surviver.  It  became  necessary,  therefore,  in 
the  valuation  for  a  division,  to  introduce  the  esti 
mate  of  the  probabilities  of  life.  Clinton  discuss- 


108  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

ed  this  complicated  subject  with  his  usual  ability. 
It  is  unnecessary,  however,  for  us  to  enter  into  the 
merits  of  this  case,  for  means  were  found  to  con 
tinue  the  litigation ;  and  the  suit  was  not  finally 
settled  until  the  dropping  of  both  the  lives  render 
ed  all  that  had  been  done  useless. 

The  law  of  libel  in  the  United  States  has  under 
gone  great  alterations,  in  order  to  conform  it  to 
the  spirit  of  our  institutions,  from  the  strict  rule 
which  the  British  common  law  has  sanctioned,  that 
"  the  greater  the  truth  the  greater  the  libel."  In 
that  country,  to  publish  even  the  truth  in  respect  to 
parties  of  distinguished  rank  becomes  a  crime  of  no 
little  magnitude ;  and  even  among  equals  the  truth 
of  the  publication  is  no  plea  in  mitigation  of  the 
punishment  awarded  to  a  libel  as  a  crime,  howev 
er  strongly  it  may  influence  a  jury  in  the  estimate 
of  damages  in  a  civil  action.  A  suit  commenced 
against  the  notorious  Cheetharn  was  carried  up  to 
the  Court  of  Errors  in  1805,  and  afforded  Clinton 
a  farther  opportunity  of  exhibiting  his  judicial  ac 
umen. 

His  last  decision  was  in  the  case  of  John  Van 
Ness  Yates.  This  person  had  been  committed  by 
Chancellor  Lansing  for  an  alleged  contempt  of 
court,  and  had  been  released  under  a  writ  of  ha 
beas  corpus  by  a  process  at  common  law.  No 
sooner  was  he  freed  from  imprisonment  than  he 
was  forthwith  recommitted  by  the  chancellor.  He, 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  109 

in  consequence,  brought  an  action  against  that  high 
judicial  officer  for  damages,  and  was  defeated  on 
a  point  of  law  in  the  Supreme  Court.  In  attempt 
ing  to  remove  the  cause  by  a  writ  of  error  from 
the  Court  of  Errors,  he  was  met  by  an  order  of 
supersedeas  from  the  chancellor,  and  his  proceed 
ings  were  stopped.  The  question  was,  however, 
brought  in  the  form  of  a  suit  between  Yates  and 
the  State  before  the  Court  of  Errors,  which  deci 
ded,  in  conformity  with  an  opinion  delivered  by 
Clinton,  that  the  writ  of  error  issued  of  right,  and 
could  neither  be  withheld  at  the  pleasure  of  a 
judge,  nor  stopped  by  any  process  issuing  from  the 
Court  of  Chancery.  The  importance  of  this  de 
cision  is  manifest,  and  the  opinion  of  Clinton  is 
marked  by  a  profound  knowledge  of  the  history 
of  the  common  law,  and  an  acute  perception  of  the 
variations  which  the  peculiar  nature  of  republican 
institutions  must  necessarily  introduce  into  it. 

In  the  words  of  that  distinguished  jurist  Chan 
cellor  Kent,  "  some  of  these  opinions  are  models 
of  judicial  and  parliamentary  eloquence,  and  they 
all  relate  to  important  questions  affecting  constitu 
tional  rights  and  civil  liberty." 

While  a  member  of  the  Senate,  Clinton  had  an 
opportunity  of  vindicating  the  freedom  of  debate, 
and  maintaining  the  immunity  of  members  of  a 
legislative  body  from  personal  responsibility  for 
words  spoken  in  its  deliberative  proceedings.  On 


110  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

the  discussion  of  a  law  for  granting  the  right  of 
holding  real  estate  to  certain  aliens,  Clinton  felt  it 
his  duty  to  comment  on  the  conduct  of  one  of 
them  to  his  tenants.  It  is  to  be  remarked,  that  the 
grant  of  such  privilege  is  contrary  to  the  policy  of 
most  other  countries,  and  that  Great  Britain  in 
particular,  to  whose  subjects  such  grants  have  most 
frequently  been  made  by  the  State  of  New- York, 
has  been  the  most  illiberal  in  its  escheats  of  the 
inheritances  which,  in  natural  course,  would  have 
passed  to  foreigners.  The  person  whose  conduct 
was  commented  upon  sought  what  is  styled  sat 
isfaction  for  the  attack  by  sending  a  challenge. 
Such  is  the  code  of  modern  honour,  that  he  seems 
to  have  calculated  almost  with  certainty  that  Clin 
ton,  who  had  not  yet  abjured  its  bloody  rule, 
\vould  not  have  hesitated  to  give  him  a  meeting. 
It  had  indeed  been  the  practice,  in  too  many  in 
stances,  to  submit  disputes  to  a  decision  by  arms; 
and  the  immunity  of  legislators  for  words  spoken 
in  debate  was  not  regarded  in  the  courts  of  honour. 
There  are,  no  doubt,  instances  where  attacks 
on  character  become  cowardly  when  shielded  by 
parliamentary  privilege;  but  this  was  not  one. 
The  facts  stated  were  no  more  than  the  simple 
truth,  and  the  case  called  for  their  disclosure. 
Men  of  less  moral  courage  than  Clinton  might, 
however,  have  hesitated,  and  feared  a  loss  of  rep 
utation  from  refusing  a  challenge;  and  it  has  been 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  Ill 

often  remarked,  that  a  greater  degree  of  coward 
ice  has  been  shown  in  the  acceptance  than  would 
have  been  exhibited  in  declining  to  fight  a  duel. 
The  fear  of  "  the  world's  dread  laugh"  is  often 
greater  than  that  of  loss  of  life,  and  has  in  many 
instances  prevailed  over  the  obligations  of  moral 
ity  and  religion.  It  was,  in  fact,  necessary  that 
some  person  of  standing  and  reputation,  equal  to 
that  of  Clinton,  should  interpose  the  authority  of 
his  example  to  correct  the  mistaken  notions  of 
honour  which  prevailed. 

It  was,  fortunately,  unnecessary  for  him  to  ex 
hibit  proofs  of  personal  courage.  He  had,  on 
another  occasion,  done  all  that  the  nicest  casuist 
in  points  of  honour  comd  have  demanded;  and 
although  his  lending  his  countenance  to  the  prac 
tice  of  duelling  is,  if  capable  of  any  excuse,  not  to 
be  vindicated  in  the  eye  of  religious  feeling,  he 
had  established  a  character  for  undaunted  bravery. 

Clinton,  on  a  full  view  of  the  subject,  saw  that 
he  was  precluded  from  giving  his  challenger  a 
meeting  by  considerations  other  than  those  of  bare 
privilege.  He  therefore  laid  the  whole  matter, 
without  delay,  before  the  Senate.  The  parties 
concerned  in  the  challenge  were  forthwith  com 
mitted  to  the  custody  of  the  officers  of  the  house, 
whence  they  were  not  discharged  until  they  had 
made  an  humble  apology  for  the  breach  of  privi 
lege. 


112  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

So  high  did  parties  run,  and  so  completely  did 
they  blind  one  portion  of  the  community  to  a  true 
perception  of  the  matter,  that  much  blame  was  at 
the  moment  poured  upon  Clinton  for  a  course,  a 
deviation  from  which  must  have  loaded  him  with 
severe  censure,  and  left  an  indelible  spot  on  his 
fame.  The  acceptance  of  the  challenge  would 
have  placed  his  adversary  on  the  vantage  ground, 
and,  whatever  had  been  the  result,  Clinton  would 
have  fallen  in  the  estimation  of  the  thinking  part 
of  the  community. 

At  the  present  day,  no  difference  of  opinion  on 
this  point  exists.  It  is  admitted  on  all  hands,  that 
Clinton  on  this  occasion  not  only  maintained  with 
intelligent  firmness  the  freedom  of  debate  and  the 
privileges  of  the  deliberative  body  of  which  he 
was  a  member,  but  pursued  the  course  most  con 
sistent  with  his  own  reputation  and  the  dignity  of 
his  character. 

On  another  occasion,  he  vindicated  with  signal 
determination  the  dignity  of  the  body  of  which 
he  was  a  member.  The  privilege  of  banking,  un 
der  an  act  of  incorporation,  had  hitherto  been 
granted  by  the  Legislature  with  great  parsimony. 
In  the  city  of  New- York,  no  more  than  one  bank 
had  received  the  direct  sanction  of  that  body,  and 
another  had  exercised  the  powers  by  a  free  con 
struction  of  privileges  granted  avowedly  for  a 
very  different  purpose.  It  is  foreign  to  our  pur- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  113 

pose  to  compare  this  rigid  course  with  the  open  and 
liberal  plan  which  has  recently  been  introduced ; 
it  is  sufficient  to  say  that  a  charter  was  of  great 
value  on  account  of  the  difficulty  of  procuring  it. 
In  the  attempt  to  obtain  an  act  of  incorporation 
for  a  new  bank,  money,  promises,  and  other  means 
of  corruption  were  not  spared.  Among  other 
agents,  a  member  of  the  Senate  itself  was  not 
free  from  the  suspicion  of  acting  from  corrupt  mo 
tives,  and  was  notoriously  the  channel  by  which 
others  were  tempted.  As  soon  as  Clinton  became 
aware  of  the  circumstances,  he  moved  an  inquiry 
into  the  conduct  of  his  colleague,  and,  after  some 
proceedings  in  prosecution  of  this  inquiry,  the 
senator  found  it  expedient  to  resign  his  seat  rath 
er  than  incur  the  consequences  of  an  examination. 
Clinton  thus  boldly  attempted  to  stem  at  its 
source  that  current  of  corruption  which  afterward 
degraded  the  state,  and  gave  birth  to  that  third 
estate,  "the  lobby,"  which,  although  unknown  to 
the  constitution  and  laws,  has  at  times  controlled 
the  actions  of  the  constituted  chambers. 


114  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Literary  and  Scientific  Pursuits  of  Clinton. — His- 
torical  Society ;  his  efforts  in  its  behalf,  and 
his  Jlddress  on  the  History  of  the  Five  Nations. 
— Literary  and  Philosophical  Society  formed, 
and  Clinton  chosen  President. — His  Inaugural 
Discourse. — His  Discovery  of  a  Native  Variety 
of  Wheat,  and  other  Contributions  to  Natural 
Science. 

WE  have  had  occasion  to  mention  the  bias 
which  Clinton  exhibited  in  the  early  part  of  his 
career  to  scientific  pursuits.  Of  these  and  of 
literature,  he  became,  as  his  influence  was  extend 
ed,  the  active  patron,  while  he  did  not  cease  to 
devote  his  brief  intervals  of  leisure  to  their  cultiva 
tion  by  his  own  labours.  The  Historical  Society 
was  established  in  the  City  of  New-York  in  1804 
by  a  voluntary  association.  The  venerable  Egbert 
Benson  was  its  first  president,  and  had  attempted 
to  direct  its  action  to  the  traditional  lore  of  which 
he  himself  possessed  so  ample  a  fund.  It  was  not 
found  practicable,  however,  by  means  of  the  limited 
contributions  of  individuals,  to  accumulate  sufficient 
funds  for  the  furtherance  of  its  objects,  nor  would 
the  friends  of  the  distinguished  dead  intrust  their 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  115 

memorials  to  an  ephemeral  association.  In  order 
to  enable  this  society  to  accomplish  its  avowed 
and  praiseworthy  objects,  Clinton,  to  whom  a  pe 
tition  for  that  purpose  was  referred  in  1809,  drew 
an  act  of  incorporation,  which  he  presented,  along 
with  a  strong  and  able  report  in  its  favour.  This 
report  was  adopted  and  the  charter  granted.  Not 
content  with  this,  he  in  1814  framed  a  memorial 
to  the  Legislature  on  behalf  of  the  Historical  So 
ciety.  In  this,  after  dividing  the  civil  history  of 
the  State  of  New- York  into  four  epochs,  he  shows 
in  what  a  scattered  state  even  the  records  were, 
whence  alone  an  authentic  history  of  these  several 
periods  could  be  derived.  The  Indian  tribes  were 
fast  disappearing  before  the  moral  force  of  civiliza 
tion;  the  mounds,  ramparts,  and  tumuli  of  a  yet 
earlier  race  were  yielding  to  the  plough  and  har 
row  ;  while  the  records  of  the  official  treaties  be 
tween  the  Five  Nations  and  the  colonial  authorities 
were  in  the  hands  of  an  expatriated  family. 

The  history  of  the  emigrants  from  Holland  and 
of  the  Protestant  families  of  Belgium,  who  had 
preferred  to  encounter  the  dangers  of  the  seas  and 
the  terrors  of  the  wilderness  to  submission  to  the 
bloody  rule  of  Alba,  were  in  the  archives  of  the 
Dutch  West  India  Company.  Much  of  the  man 
uscript  history  of  the  British  colonial  period  was 
in  the  public  offices  of  London,  or  transferred  to 
the  library  of  the  British  Museum.  While,  even 


116  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

for  the  period  which  had  elapsed  since  the  revo 
lution,  no  provision  had  been  made  for  the  preser 
vation  of  the  pamphlets,  the  periodicals,  and  the 
daily  publications,  which,  however  they  may  be 
despised  after  their  first  ephemeral  interest  has 
subsided,  become,  after  the  lapse  of  years,  the  viv 
id  expression  of  the  feelings,  the  manners,  and  the 
principles  of  the  era  which  gave  them  birth. 

This  memorial  was  favourably  received  by  the 
Legislature,  and  led  to  a  grant  of  twelve  thousand 
dollars  in  aid  of  the  funds  of  the  society. 

The  grant  was  to  be  received  from  the  avails 
of  a  lottery,  and  the  society  unluckily  engaged  its 
credit  in  the  purchase  of  books  and  of  manuscripts 
ere  it  was  known  how  distant  and  precarious  were 
the  proceeds  of  this  mode  of  raising  money.  It 
thus  became  involved  in  a  debt  which  was  not 
extinguished  without  many  and  severe  sacrifices. 
It  had,  however,  before  its  usefulness  was  impeded 
by  the  pressure  of  this  debt,  published  several  vol 
umes  of  transactions,  which  are  of  much  value. 
Its  library  still  remains  an  evidence  of  the  liberal 
ity  of  the  state,  and  a  monument  of  the  earnestness 
with  which  Clinton  furthered  such  institutions  as 
were  intended  to  add  to  the  permanent  reputation 
of  the  country. 

We  have  stated  that  Egbert  Benson  was  the 
first  president  of  the  Historical  Society.  He  was 
succeeded,  in  1816,  by  Gouverneur  Morris,  on 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  117 

whose  death  Clinton  was  elected  to  the  vacant 
chair.  On  taking  his  seat,  he  delivered  an  inau 
gural  discourse  on  the  history  of  the  Indians  of  the 
State  of  New-York,  which  is  the  most  valuable 
paper  contained  in  the  transactions  of  this  society. 

In  the  year  1814,  a  number  of  gentlemen  of 
scientific  taste  undertook  the  formation  of  a  socie 
ty  for  the  cultivation  of  literature  and  the  encour 
agement  of  science.  The  projector  of  this  associa 
tion  appears  to  have  been  Dr.  Hugh  Williamson, 
who  had  in  early  life  filled  a  prominent  place  in 
the  American  Philosophical  Society,  where  he  had 
been  associated  with  Rittenhouse  in  the  celebrated 
observations  of  the  transit  of  Venus. 

In  the  opinion  of  Williamson,  the  increase  of 
population  and  the  central  position  of  New-York 
rendered  it  advisable  to  form  an  institution  having 
the  same  objects  in  view  as  the  society  in  Philadel 
phia.  He  found  a  ready  and  efficient  coadjutor  in 
Clinton,  wrho  conceived  it  due  to  the  reputation  of 
his  native  state,  and  of  the  city  over  which  he 
presided,  that  they  should  take  a  rank  in  scientific 
pursuits  consistent  with  their  wealth  and  popula 
tion.  In  the  formation  of  this  society,  Drs.  Mitchill 
and  Hosack,  Fulton,  and  several  other  distinguish 
ed  persons,  joined  with  zeal,  together  with  a  num 
ber  of  younger  men,  several  of  whom  have  since 
become  celebrated. 

Clinton  was  anxious  that  Williamson  should  be 


118  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

placed  at  the  head  of  the  new  society ;  but  all  the 
other  associates  concurred  in  opinion  that  he  him 
self  was  best  fitted  to  fill  that  station,  and  he  was 
accordingly  elected  its  first  president.  By  his  ex 
ertions  and  influence  in  the  Legislature  a  charter 
was  obtained,  and  the  New- York  Literary  and 
Philosophical  Society  went  into  operation,  appa 
rently  under  the  most  happy  auspices.  Its  public 
proceedings  were  opened  by  an  address  from  Clin 
ton,  which  has  been  much  admired,  and  which 
exhibits  evidence  of  the  extent  of  his  reading,  and 
manifests  the  variety  of  his  studies. 

Clinton  continued  at  the  head  of  the  Literary 
and  Philosophical  Society  until  his  death  ;  but  the 
brilliant  beginnings  of  that  association  were  not 
followed  by  continued  success.  The  expenses  at 
tendant  upon  its  publications  were  considered  a 
heavy  burden  by  many  of  the  members,  who  with 
drew  ;  even  among  those  who  were  willing  to  con 
tinue  their  subscriptions,  the  political  disputes  of 
the  day,  in  which  Clinton's  name  became  the  watch 
word  of  adverse  factions,  produced  an  injurious  ef 
fect  ;  while,  in  fine,  personal  jealousies,  and  the  un 
popularity  of  one  of  the  other  officers  with  many 
members  of  his  own  profession,  created  an  opposi 
tion  to  its  proceedings  which  could  not  be  overcome. 
A  society,  which  took  its  rise  in  the  bosom  of  the 
Literary  and  Philosophical,  and  which  was  intend- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  119 

ed  as  an  aid  and  not  as  a  rival,  engrossed  all  the 
communications  of  those  who  were  most  active  in 
science;  and,  after  the  publication  of  one  quarto 
volume  and  a  part  of  another,  its  proceedings 
ceased.  It  may  be  fairly  believed,  that,  had  Clin 
ton  continued  to  reside  in  the  City  of  New-York, 
and  had  given  to  the  Literary  and  Philosophical 
Society  the  advantage  of  his  presence  as  presiding 
officer,  the  decay  into  which  it  has  fallen  might 
have  been  avoided  or  delayed ;  but  other  more  im 
portant  pursuits  withdrew  him  from  its  meetings, 
and,  with  his  personal  attention,  the  prosperity  of 
the  society  seems  to  have  departed. 

It  may  be  questioned  at  the  present  day  how 
far  the  success-  of  such  an  institution  is  compatible 
with  the  habits  and  manners  of  the  age.  The 
French  Institute  no  doubt  flourishes,  but  it  is  sup 
ported  by  the  direct  aid  of  the  government,  and 
its  scientific  and  literary  classes  receive  annual  sal 
aries.  The  Royal  Society  of  Great  Britain,  if  it 
receive  little  direct  patronage  from  the  govern 
ment,  is  able,  by  the  value  ascribed  by  fashion  to 
the  letters  F.R.S.,  to  call  to  the  aid  of  its  funds 
any  number  it  may  choose  to  elect  of  the  rich  or 
powerful,  from  princes  of  the  blood  to  wealthy 
merchants. 

In  spite  of  these  advantages,  these  institutions 
have  ceased  to  exert  the  influence  they  once  pos 
sessed.  The  daily  papers,  and  the  monthly  and 

K 


120  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

quarterly  miscellanies,  make  novelties  in  science  as 
much  objects  of  their  pursuit  as  the  political  news 
of  the  day,  and  thus  frequently  forestal  the  trans 
actions  of  the  learned  associations,  or  give  in  an 
abridged  form,  and  at  a  much  lower  price,  conden 
sed  accounts  of  recent  discoveries.  Popular  and 
cheap  publications,  therefore,  interfere  with  the 
sale  of  the  more  costly  volumes  in  which  the  so 
cieties  give  their  transactions  to  the  world. 

In  the  establishment  of  the  Historical  and  the  Lit 
erary  and  Philosophical  Societies,  particularly  in  the 
munificent  grant  he  obtained  for  the  former,  Clin 
ton  exhibited  a  character  very  different  from  al 
most  any  other  American  statesman.  He  is  among 
the  few  who  seem  to  have  seen  that  ihe  money  ex 
pended  in  the  support  of  such  institutions  is  not 
lost,  but  will  shortly  be  repaid  with  interest.  In 
conformity  with  this  enlightened  and  liberal  view, 
he  gave  to  these  societies  the  benefit  of  his  pen  in 
drawing  their  charters  ;  his  aid  as  a  member  of  the 
Legislature  in  procuring  the  passage  of  their  acts 
of  incorporation ;  and  devoted  to  their  prosperity 
no  inconsiderable  share  of  his  time  and  talent.  In 
these  associations,  the  advantage  to  be  derived 
from  his  high  political  standing,  and  lofty  reputa 
tion  as  a  statesman  and  magistrate,  were  fully  ap 
preciated,  in  securing  unity  of  action  and  harmony 
among  persons  necessarily  rivals.  There  were 
those,  however,  who  could  not  brook  the  control 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  121 

of  one  whom  they  styled  a  layman,  and  united  with 
his  political  opponents  in  an  attempt  to  ridicule  the 
holder  of  such  apparently  incongruous  offices.  He 
was,  at  the  same  time,  president  of  the  Academy 
of  Fine  Arts,  of  the  Historical,  and  of  the  Lite 
rary  and  Philosophical  Society ;  but  as  he  had  only 
accepted  these  stations  with  a  view  to  the  public 
benefit,  he  yielded  to  the  first  appearance  of  dis 
content.  In  the  Academy  he  gave  way  to  Colo 
nel  Trumbull,  and  in  the  Historical  Society  to  Dr. 
Hosack.  The  result  of  his  resignation  \vas  disas 
trous  to  the  interests  of  both  institutions.  The  dis 
tinguished  men  we  have  named  did  not  possess,  in 
the  eye  of  the  public,  the  decided  superiority  over 
their  associates  which  Clinton  was  always  able  to 
maintain,  and  both  institutions  decayed  from  the 
moment  he  ceased  to  preside  over  their  delibera 
tions. 

If  Clinton  applied  his  hands  to  the  practice  of 
none  of  the  fine  arts,  he  was,  notwithstanding, 
their  liberal  patron,  and  a  connoisseur  of  no  little 
taste ;  his  contributions  to  the  history  of  the  ab 
origines  of  our  state  may  well  place  him  on  a 
level  with  any  writer  of  that  class  which  America 
has  produced;  and  his  hundred  speeches,  address 
es,  and  reports,  sufficiently  exhibit  his  literary 
abilities.  As  a  cultivator  of  philosophy,  in  the 
sense  in  which  it  is  familiarly  received,  he  ranks 
still  higher,  and  was,  as  we  have  already  stated. 


122  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

not  only  a  diligent  student  in  natural  history  in  its 
several  branches,  but  made  several  interesting  dis 
coveries. 

In  the  first  volume  of  the  Transactions  of  the 
Literary  and  Philosophical  Society,  he  published 
some  remarks  on  the  fishes  of  the  western  waters 
of  the  State  of  New-York,  in  a  letter  to  his  friend 
Dr.  Mitchill.  In  this  he  illustrates  the  fact,  now  so 
well  known,  that,  in  variety,  in  abundance,  and  in 
delicacy,  they  are  not  surpassed  by  any  in  the 
world. 

In  the  first  part  of  the  second  volume  of  the 
same  Transactions,  an  article  by  Clinton  is  insert 
ed  on  certain  phenomena  of  the  great  lakes  of 
America.  These  he  is  inclined  to  attribute  to  vol 
canic  action.  In  the  same  volume  we  have  a  me 
moir  by  him  on  the  antiquities  discovered  in  the 
western  part  of  the  State  of  New-York. 

To  the  NewT-York  Medical  and  Physical  Jour 
nal  he  communicated  some  remarks  on  the  Colum- 
ba  Migratoria,  the  passenger  or  common  wild 
pigeon ;  a  bird  which  he  deems  peculiar  to  North 
America,  and  whose  habits  and  history  are  very 
interesting.  In  the  same  work  may  be  found  an 
account  of  the  Salmo  Otsego,  or  Otsego  bass,  a 
fish  of  peculiar  excellence,  which  is  found  in  great 
abundance  in  the  lake  of  that  name,  where  the 
eastern  branch  of  the  Susquehanna  has  its  princi 
pal  source.  This  fish,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  had 


D  E  W  I  T  T     CLINTON.  123 

not  been  described,  and,  as  its  name  imports,  had 
been  confounded  by  the  uninformed  with  the  genus 
perca,  of  which  bass  is  the  familiar  name  among 
the  settlers  of  Dutch  extraction. 

To  the  Annals  of  the  Lyceum  of  Natural  Histo 
ry  he  communicated  a  description  of  a  new  spe 
cies  of  fish  in  the  Hudson  River,  and  a  paper  of 
some  length  on  the  hirundo  fulva.  The  first  of 
these,  although  familiar  to  all  who  have  seen  nets 
drawn  in  the  bay  of  New-York,  had  not  been  re 
marked  by  Mitchill,  whose  researches  had  been  re 
stricted  to  the  specimens  furnished  by  those  who 
supply  the  markets ;  and,  from  its  small  size,  it 
had  by  many  been  considered  as  the  fry  of  a  lar 
ger  fish.  In  the  second  paper  he  gives  several  in 
teresting  remarks  on  birds  of  the  swallow  kind. 
The  migratory  habits  of  the  bird  in  question,  and 
its  other  peculiarities,  are  set  forth  by  him  in  an  at 
tractive  manner,  and  illustrated  by  many  facts,  the 
result  of  close  personal  observation.  His  common 
place  books  abound  with  extracts  from  authors 
who  have  written  on  the  habits  of  the  swallow, 
and  with  memoranda  of  his  own  inquiries. 

In  the  discourse  delivered  before  the  New-York 
Historical  Society,  he  evinces  with  what  interest 
he  had  studied  the  aborigines  of  our  country. 
These  "Romans,"  as  he  styled  them,  "of  the 
Western  World"  found  in  him  an  able  historian, 
and  a  strenuous  asserter  of  ^eir  prowess  and  tal- 


124  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

ent.  He,  besides,  investigated,  with  something  of 
the  closeness  of  medical  inquiry,  the  peculiarities 
of  the  physical  constitution  of  the  Indian;  and 
among  his  letters  and  memoranda  are  to  be  found 
many  well-grounded  conjectures  on  the  laws  of 
life,  as  modified  in  both  sexes  by  the  habits  of 
a  savage  life. 

From  the  freedom  from  all  bias  to  preconceived 
opinions  with  which  Clinton  prosecuted  his  studies 
in  natural  history,  and  from  the  love  he  manifested 
to  that  science,  there  can  be  no  question  that  pub 
lic  cares  alone  prevented  him  from  attaining  a  tri 
umphant  eminence  in  investigations  of  this  char 
acter.  In  the  words  of  one  who  well  knew  him, 
and  was  the  confidant  of  his  philosophical  pursuits, 
"  He  loved  to  dwell  upon  every  incident  associa 
ted  with  the  labours  and  services  of  naturalists; 
from  Hennepin  to  Kalm,  everything  was  familiar 
to  him;  the  great  Swede  was  ever  a  topic  of  de 
light,  and  the  heroic  achievements  of  Cuvier  the 
theme  of  his  admiration.  So  much  did  he,  at  a 
later  period,  become  enamoured  of  the  genius 
and  skill  of  the  modern  French  school  of  natural 
ists  that  there  is  reason  to  conclude,  that  he  would 
finally  have  adopted  the  natural  system  of  Jussieu 
in  preference  to  the  artificial  method  of  LinnaBus, 
and  would  have  chosen  the  improved  nomencla 
ture  of  the  Parisian  savans  rather  than  that  of  the 
English  writers,  whose  works  he  had  studied  with 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  125 

deference,  and  to  whose  authority  he  had  original 
ly  bowed  with  submission." 

In  addition  to  his  communications  to  American 
societies  and  scientific  periodicals,  he  maintained  a 
correspondence  with  several  of  the  most  eminent 
naturalists  in  Europe,  and,  among  others,  with  the 
late  distinguished  president  of  the  Linnsean  Society 
of  London,  Sir  James  Edward  Smith.  Of  that 
institution  Clinton  was  elected  an  associate,  as  a 
just  tribute  to  his  zeal  in  behalf  of  Natural  Sci 
ence.  Several  of  these  letters  have  been  publish 
ed,  and  exhibit  close  and  accurate  observation, 
followed  up  by  sound  induction. 

His  pursuits  as  a  naturalist  were  not  limited  to 
the  narrow  object  of  acquiring  individual  reputa 
tion  as  a  cultivator  of  the  science,  but  were  pur 
sued  chiefly  in  reference  to  their  bearings  upon  the 
wealth  and  prosperity  of  the  state.  He  saw,  by 
improvident  legislation,  and  the  improvement,  as  it 
was  styled,  of  sites  for  water-power,  the  vast  native 
wealth  which  existed  in  the  fisheries  rapidly  de 
caying  ;  and,  in  the  knowledge  of  the  history  of 
the  finned  race,  he  sought  the  means  of  prevent 
ing  their  diminution,  and,  in  some  cases,  their  total 
extinction.  He  inquired  deeply  and  laboriously 
into  the  modes  of  stocking  ponds  and  lakes  with 
fish,  and  sought  the  species  best  adapted  to  the 
purpose.  On  this  subject  he  corresponded  with 


126  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

the  chief  magistrate  of  the  neighbouring  State  of 
New-Jersey,  who  had  views  of  the  same  kind. 

The  circumstances  of  Clinton's  laborious  public 
career  left  him  no  opportunity  for  applying  the  re 
sult  of  his  researches  to  practical  purposes ;  but 
Governor  Mahlon  Dickerson,  in  his  philosophic  re 
treat  at  Succasunney,  has  shown  the  practicability 
of  the  schemes  in  which  they  took  so  strong  a  mu 
tual  interest. 

Impelled  by  the  same  patriotic  views,  he  prose 
cuted  an  inquiry  into  the  habits  and  characters  of 
the  zizania  aquatica,  or  wild  rice.  This  plant,  a 
native  of  the  lakes  of  America,  was,  in  his  opin 
ion,  calculated  to  support  an  extended  population, 
and  worthy  of  the  title  of  the  "  bread-corn  of  the 
North." 

In  his  tours  as  canal  commissioner  he  found 
growing  near  Utica  a  species  of  wheat,  which  he 
collected,  examined,  and  described.  It  is  well 
known  that  the  origin  of  the  cereal  gramina,  and 
particularly  of  wheat,  the  most  important  of  them 
all  to  civilized  nations,  is  involved  in  obscurity. 
From  the  very  earliest  date  of  historical  records 
they  have  been  the  objects  of  cultivation,  and  none 
of  them  had  been  traced  with  certainty  to  any  na 
tive  locality.  Upon  the  belief  that  wheat  is  found 
growing  wild  near  the  eastern  shore  of  the  Cas 
pian,  has  been  founded  an  argument  that  central 
Asia  is  the  cradle  of  the  human  race;  and  this 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  127 

circumstance  was  supposed  to  throw  light  upon  the 
early  history  of  mankind.  Here  was  an  adverse 
fact,  by  which  the  whole  argument  was  over 
thrown,  or  rendered  capable  of  leading  to  the  in 
credible  inference  that  the  State  of  New- York  had 
been  the  earliest  seat  of  the  progenitors  of  the  na 
tions  of  Europe  and  Asia.  This  discovery  of  Clin 
ton,  therefore,  although  hardly  noticed  by  his  coun 
trymen,  procured  him  much  reputation  among  the 
learned  in  Europe ;  and  the  diplomas  of  many  so 
cieties  founded  for  the  cultivation  of  natural  history 
were  showered  upon  him. 

In  this  instance,  his  intimate  friend  and  associate, 
Dr.  Mitchill,  was  heard  to  complain,  not  with  feel 
ings  of  envy,  but  of  admiration,  that  Clinton  had 
the  happiness,  by  seizing  upon  a  happy  accident 
and  making  a  skilful  use  of  it,  to  achieve  honours 
and  estimation  beyond  those  granted  to  almost  any 
American.  Other  observers  might  have  passed 
this  plant  as  the  accidental  offspring  of  the  cultiva 
ted  wheat,  while  Clinton  had  the  knowledge  and 
the  tact  of  observation  by  which  it  was  shown  to 
differ  sufficiently  to  disprove  such  an  origin,  and 
yet  to  fall  with  certainty  into  the  same  species. 

In  the  words  of  the  same  scientific  friend  who 
has  already  been  quoted,*  "  Six,  I  believe,  was  the 

*  J.  W.  Francis,  M.D.,  in  his  "  Discourse  before  the  Ly 
ceum  of  Natural  History." 

L 


128  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

number  of  species  of  triticum  (wheat)  stated  by 
Linnaeus.  Botanists  have  now  increased  the  num 
ber  to  22.  If  the  wild  wheat  discovered  in  Oneida 
county  shall  be  found  to  be  an  indigenous  and 
not  an  imported  grain,  and  of  spontaneous  growth, 
we  may  justly  boast  of  the  Triticum  Americanum. 
Clinton  says  that  it  delights  in  a  wet  soil,  which  is 
not  congenial  to  the  wheat  of  the  Old  Continent : 
it  presents  not  only  a  different  aspect,  but  ap 
pears  to  have  peculiar  and  characteristic  qualities. 
Should  these  conjectures  be  realized,  our  state  may 
claim  the  birthplace  of  Ceres  as  well  as  Sicily, 
where  mythology  has  yielded  to  her  the  title  of 
queen  ;  and  the  goddess  enjoy  two  special  abodes, 
our  fertile  West  as  well  as  her  favourite  Enna. 
A  harvest,  in  more  respects  than  one,  awaits  the 
discussion  of  the  question  by  the  American  nat 
uralist." 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  129 


CHAPTER  X. 

Description  of  the  Water  Communications  of  the 
State  of  New-York. — Use  made  of  them  by  the 
Indians. — Expedition  of  General  Clinton  on  the 
Susquehanna.  —  Views  of  Lieutenant-Governor 
C olden. — Tour  of  Washington  to  Wood  Creek. 
— His  Predilections  for  the  Route  to  the  Chesa 
peake. — Clinton's  liberal  Policy  in  relation  to 
this  Question. 

THE  Atlantic  coast  of  the  United  States  is  sep 
arated  from  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi  and  the 
basins  of  the  great  lakes  by  a  system  of  mountain 
chains.  No  less  than  five  distinct  ranges  can  be 
traced,  and,  in  many  places,  a  greater  number  of 
ridges  are  met  with  in  passing  from  tide-water  to 
the  streams  of  the  interior.  This  system  of  mount 
ains  extends  from  the  frontiers  of  Canada  to  the 
State  of  Georgia.  Its  outer  chain  is  made  up  of 
a  number  of  short  and  separate  ridges,  extending 
north  and  south,  and  is  therefore  divided  by  valleys 
oblique  to  its  general  direction,  which  is  northeast 
and  southwest.  Through  these  valleys  a  number 
of  streams,  of  greater  or  less  magnitude,  make 
their  way ;  but  of  these,  the  Hudson  alone  is  nav 
igable  through  the  ridge  for  vessels  of  any  mag 
nitude.  This  river  bursts  through  this  rocky  bar- 


130  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

rier  in  a  channel  nowhere  less  than  1000  yards 
in  width,  and  deep,  enough  for  vessels  of  the  lar 
gest  size  ;  but  it  does  not  cut  any  of  the  other 
ridges.  The  Susquehanna,  on  the  other  hand, 
rising  in  the  State  of  New-York,  and  whose  west 
ern  branch  has  its  head  at  no  great  distance  from 
Lake  Erie  and  from  that  of  a  principal  branch 
of  the  Ohio,  cuts  through  all  the  ridges  of  which 
we  have  spoken.  No  other  river  makes  its  way 
through  the  whole  system ;  and  thus  the  Valley  of 
the  Susquehanna  might  appear  to  be  pointed  out  by 
nature  as  the  proper  channel  for  a  navigable  com 
munication  between  the  lakes  and  the  Atlantic. 
This  river  is,  however,  so  rapid  in  the  lower  part 
of  its  course,  and  its  upper  valley  is  separated  by 
barriers  of  such  height  from  the  basin  of  Lake  On 
tario,  that  it  could  neither  be  navigated  by  an  as 
cending  trade,  nor  reached  by  the  settlers  of  the 
more  fertile  parts  of  the  State  of  New- York.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  Mohawk',  the  most  important 
branch  of  the  Hudson,  has  its  course  in  a  valley 
that  opens  towards  the  west,  and  merges  in  the 
basin  of  Lake  Ontario.  Its  greatest  fall  is  immedi 
ately  at  its  junction  with  the  Hudson ;  and  thence, 
with  the  exception  of  an  insuperable  rapid  at  the 
Little  Falls,  it  was  accessible  to  a  navigation  in 
small  vessels,  both  in  the  ascending  and  descend 
ing  direction,  as  far  as  the  ancient  Fort  Stanwix, 
the  site  of  the  modern  village  of  Rome. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  131 

In  this  vicinity  is  a  swamp,  whence,  in  times  of 
flood,  the  waters  run  in  opposite  directions  towards 
the  Hudson  and  Lake  Ontario.  A  short  portage 
at  this  place  led  to  Wood  Creek,  a  deep  and  slug 
gish  stream  which  falls  into  the  Oneida  Lake. 
The  outlet  of  the  Oneida  Lake,  after  receiving  the 
Onondago,  unites  with  the  Seneca  outlet  to  form 
the  Oswego  River,  and  through  the  latter  the 
navigation  was  practicable  as  far  as  Lake  Onta 
rio. 

This  navigation  from  Schenectady  to  Oswego 
was  practised  by  European  traders  at  a  very  early 
date.  It  is  even  probable  that  the  Dutch,  who  at 
first  limited  their  views  to  traffic,  had  reached 
Lake  Ontario  before  the  agricultural  settlements 
of  the  Colony  of  New  Netherlands  were  com 
menced.  At  any  rate,  the  route  was  well  known 
and  practised  by  Dutch  traders  before  the  con 
quest  by  the  British;  and  in  1810,  the  commis 
sioners  appointed  to  explore  the  country  in  refer 
ence  to  a  canal  navigation,  found  at  the  outlet  of 
the  river  obvious  traces  of  the  Dutch  trading- 
houses,  separate  and  clearly  distinct  from  the 
ruins  of  the  fortifications  with  which  the  French 
and  English  had,  in  succession,  occupied  that  im 
portant  position.  It  appears,  however,  that  in  the 
disturbances  which  attended  and  followed  the  ces 
sion  to  England,  the  traders,  deprived  of  support, 
yielded  to  the  growing  influence  of  the  French. 


132  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

The  Seneca  outlet,  which,  as  we  have  seen, 
joins  the  Onondago  at  Three  River  Point,  was 
practicable  for  boats  into  the  lake  whence  it  pro 
ceeds,  and  through  the  Cayuga  outlet  the  lake  of 
the  same  name  could  be  reached.  At  the  head  of 
the  Seneca  and  of  Lake  Cayuga  were  the  most 
remote  points  of  the  inland  communication. 

Lake  Ontario,  whose  southern  shore  affords  nu 
merous  good  harbours,  was  not  unsafe  for  boats 
which  coasted  along  it  to  the  Niagara  River,  where 
they  were  carried  over  the  portage  to  Schlosser, 
and  thence  passed  into  Lake  Erie. 

A  more  southern  line  of  communication  was 
also  practicable.     Leaving  the  Mohawk  at  Fort 
Plain,  boats  were  carried  over  a  long  portage  to 
the  Otsego  Lake,  whence  they  could  descend  the 
main  branch  of  the  Susquehanna   to    Chemung 
Point.     Here,  entering  into  the  Tioga  branch,  they 
might  ascend  the  sluggish  stream  of  that  river  al 
most  to  its  source,  and  to  points  at  no  great  di,( 
tance  from  navigable  waters  of  the  Alleghany,  a 
important  branch  of  the  Ohio. 

The  last-mentioned  navigation  was  applied  to 
great  advantage  during  the  Revolutionary  war. 
The  right  wing  of  the  army  intended  to  act 
against,  the  Indians  was  assembled  on  the  Mo 
hawk,  whence  it  threatened  the  confederated  na 
tions  on  the  front;  but  this  was  a  mere  feint;  for, 
crossing  to  the  Otsego  Lake,  it  was  embarked  on 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  133 

the  Susquehanna,  and  borne  upon  its  current  to 
a  junction  with  the  main  body  of  the  army  at 
Chemung  Point.  Thence  the  united  force  moved 
upon  the  rear  and  flank  of  the  strategic  position 
occupied  by  the  Tories  and  their  savage  allies. 
The  important  results  of  this  brilliant  -military  op 
eration  are  too  well  known  to  be  repeated  here. 

The  communications  of  which  we  have  spoken 
were  used  with  great  skill  by  the  five  confederated 
nations  of  Iroquois,  in  their  wars  with  hostile 
tribes.  By  the  Hudson  their  canoes  descended, 
bearing  forces  which  reduced  to  subjection  the 
Lenni  Lenape  or  Algonquin  races,  to  the  extreme 
end  of  Long  Island.  By  Lake  Ontario  and  the 
Saint  Lawrence  their  war  parties  penetrated  un 
til  they  met  the  first  French  expedition  on  the 
Island  of  Montreal.  On  Lake  Erie  they  defeated 
in  a  naval  action,  and  almost  exterminated,  a  cog 
nate  nation.  The  Susquehanna  afforded  them  the 
means  of  replenishing  the  ranks  of  the  expedi 
tions  they  sent  into  Virginia,  and  which  penetrated 
into  North  Carolina,  where  an  invading  body  of 
Mingoes  founded  the  powerful  Tuscarora  nation. 
On  the  west  the  Alleghany  was  the  channel  by 
which  a  perpetual  war  was  waged  with  the  In 
dians  of  the  Ohio. 

In  these  expeditions  a  peculiar  description  of 
vessel  was  employed,  the  bark  canoe.  This  was 
so  light,  that,  although  capable  of  carrying  ten  or 


134  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

twelve  men,  with  their  arms  and  provisions,  it 
could  be  readily  transported  over  the  portages  on 
the  shoulders  of  two  of  them.  The  traders  of  Eu 
ropean  origin  borrowed  the  mode  of  constructing 
these  vessels  from  the  Indians,  but  the  Canadian 
French  made  a  much  more  extensive  and  success 
ful  use  of  them  than  the  British  colonists.  They 
were  also  employed  in  the  military  expeditions  of 
the  French ;  and,  having  obtained  the  command  of 
Lake  Ontario,  on  which  they  built  armed  vessels, 
they  formed  communications  both  for  commercial 
and  warlike  purposes  with  the  Ohio  and  the  more 
western  branches  of  the  Mississippi.  In  this  man 
ner  the  British  colonies  were  gradually  surround 
ed  by  a  chain  of  French  posts,  extending  from 
Lake  Champlain  to  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi. 
In  the  mean  time,  the  merchants  of  Albany  con 
tented  themselves  with  trading  with  such  Indians 
as  actually  visited  that  place,  or  with  selling  to 
the  French  traders  such  goods  of  British  manufac 
ture  as  were  absolutely  necessary  for  the  Indian 
market.  The  idea  of  a  communication  for  the 
purposes  of  settlement,  and  of  the  commerce 
which  would  thus  be  created  in  the  productions 
of  agriculture,  seems  never  to  have  occurred  to 
any  one ;  and  no  clear  estimate  of  the  advantages 
of  a  direct  trade  with  the  Indians  of  the  State  of 
New-York,  by  means  of  parties  sent  out  for  the 
purpose,  was  formed  by  mercantile  men. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  135 

Lieutenant-Governor  Golden  seems  to  have 
been  the  first  to  perceive  the  danger  to  which 
the  Province  of  New- York,  and  others  even  more 
remote  from  Canada,  were  exposed,  in  conse 
quence  of  the  influence  which  French  traders  and 
missionaries  were  acquiring  over  the  Five  Nations, 
hitherto  the  firm  friends,  first  of  the  Dutch,  and 
subsequently  of  the  English.  He,  in  consequence, 
made  diligent  inquiries  into  the  communications 
by  water  which  existed  in  the  western  part  of  the 
present  State  of  New-York,  and,  having  obtained 
all  the  information  then  accessible,  made  a  com 
munication  to  Governor  Burnet,  in  which  he  sets 
forth  the  clangers  of  the  colonies,  and  proposes,  as 
a  mode  of  removing  them,  a  direct  trade  from  Al 
bany  with  the  Indians.  In  this  memoir  he  points 
out  the  route  from  the  Hudson  by  the  portage  to 
Schenectady,  the  Mohawk,  Wood  Creek,  Oneida 
Lake,  the  Onondago  and  Oswego  rivers,  to  Lake 
Ontario.  He  then  states  that  a  river  coming  from 
the  country  of  the  Senecas  joins  the  Oswego,  and 
extends  to  so  great  a  distance  as  probably  to  ap 
proach  Lake  Erie.  If  in  this  opinion  he  was  in 
correct,  it  still  shows  his  views  of  the  true  policy, 
which  was  to  avoid  the  waters  controlled  by,  or 
accessible  to,  a  rival  nation,  and  to  seek  for  com 
munications  wholly  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
colony. 

This  memoir  of  Golden  was  productive  of  im- 


136  AMERICAN   BIOGRAPHY. 

portant  consequences.  Under  the  influence  of 
Burnet,  the  trade  with  the  French  was  interdicted, 
and  a  chain  of  posts  was  established  along  the 
line  of  the  Mohawk,  the  Oneida  outlets,  and 
Onondago  River.  Finally  a  fort  was  erected  at 
Oswego  itself,  and  occupied  by  a  permanent  gar 
rison  of  troops,  raised  and  supported  by  the  colo 
ny.  The  benefits  of  the  Indian  trade  were  thus 
secured  for  the  moment  to  the  merchants  of  Alba 
ny,  and  the  fortress  of  Oswego  became  an  object 
of  jealousy  to  the  French. 

At  this  time  the  articles  of  traffic  were  the  sup 
plies  for  a  scanty  population,  deriving  its  subsist 
ence  from  the  chase  on  the  one  hand,  and  the 
valuable  article  of  furs  on  the  other.  These  arti 
cles  were  of  little  bulk  compared  with  the  value 
set  upon  them  in  their  respective  markets;  and  the 
small  canoes  of  bark,  passing  through  shallow  and 
rapid  streams,  and  transported  on  the  shoulders  of 
men  over  rough  portages,  would  not  have  been 
insufficient  for  the  purpose.  Golden  seems  there 
fore  to  have  limited  his  views  to  this  mode  of 
communication,  and  could  not  have  anticipated 
the  time  when  the  homes  of  the  mighty  tribes 
who  had  reduced  to  their  sway  so  much  of  the 
present  United  States,  and  had  alone  been  capa 
ble  of  resisting  the  science  of  European  warfare, 
should  be  possessed  by  an  agricultural  population, 
become  the  seat  of  commerce  in  the  luxuries  of 


D  E  W  IT  T     CLINTON.  137 

the  most  distant  climes,  and  aspire  to  the  triumphs 
of  manufacturing  industry.  For  the  wants  of  a 
people  exercising  these  three  great  branches  of  in 
dustry,  the  light  and  frail  barks  of  the  Indian  tra 
der  are  entirely  inadequate ;  and,  while  we  find 
in  his  memoir  the  first  good  account  of  the  water 
communications  of  our  state,  we  see  in  it  no  hint 
of  the  importance  of  improving  them  by  artificial 
means,  and  of  rendering  them  subservient  to  the 
wants  of  civilized  life. 

Sir  Henry  Moore  seems  to  have  been  the  first 
who  extended  his  views  beyond  the  trade  with  the 
Indians.  In  one  of  his  speeches  to  the  Legislature, 
he  points  out  the  practicability  of  improving  the 
navigation  of  the  rivers  of  the  state  by  means  of 
sluices  (locks),  as  in  the  canal  of  Languedoc.  It 
is  to  be  remarked,  that  this  communication  was 
made  at  a  time  when  the  parent  country  was 
without  canals,  and  that  he  was,  in  consequence, 
compelled  to  have  recourse  to  the  experience  of 
France ;  and  this  is,  perhaps,  the  first  of  the  numer 
ous  instances  in  which  Anglo-America  has,  in  the 
project,  if  not  in  the  completed  invention,  taken 
the  lead  of  Britain.  This  project  was,  how 
ever,  in  advance  both  of  the  spirit  of  the  age  and 
of  the  wants  of  the  population.  The  settlers  of 
the  Mohawk  and  Schoharie  valleys  were  too  few 
in  numbers  to  support  such  an  enterprise  by  their 
trade,  and  the  Little  Falls  of  the  former  river  were 


138  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

the  farthest  limit  of  agricultural  industry.  The 
prolific  race  of  New-England  had  not  yet  crossed 
the  Hudson  in  its  search  of  land;  and  that  the 
wilds  occupied  by  the  Five  Nations  should  be 
come  the  seat  of  a  rich  and  industrious  policy, 
was  beyond  the  limit  of  reasonable  anticipation. 

Imperfect  as  were  these  navigations  of  which 
we  have  spoken,  they  were,  notwithstanding,  em 
ployed  with  fatal  effect  against  us  in  the  early 
part  of  the  Revolutionary  war.  All  the  confeder 
ated  nations  except  the  Oneidas  ranged  them 
selves  under  the  British  banner,  and  from  their 
central  position  alternately  invaded  the  settle 
ments  on  the  Mohawk  and  on  the  Susquehanna. 
Their  supplies  of  arms  and  clothing  were  derived 
from  Canada  by  the  way  of  Oswego,  and  by  this 
channel  the  corps  of  St.  Leger  advanced,  for  the 
purpose  of  forcing  his  way  through  the  Valley  of 
the  Mohawk  to  a  junction  with  the  army  of  Bur- 
goyne. 

That  communications  so  dangerous  in  war  might 
be  applied  to  advantageous  purposes  in  peace,  was 
obvious;  and  Washington,  who  had  watched  with 
anxiety  the  operations  of  the  British  forces,  no 
sooner  found  a  respite  from  his  military  toils,  than 
he  proceeded  along  the  Mohawk,  and  examined 
in  person  the  practicability  of  forming  a  union  be 
tween  it  and  Wood  Creek.  He  also  viewed  the 
portage  between  the  Mohawk  and  the  head  of  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  139 

Susquehanna  ;  and  it  is  clear  that  his  survey  was 
made  in  conformity  with  his  favourite  view  of 
making  the  Chesapeake  the  great  centre  of  the 
trade  of  the  United  States.     That  it  was  pointed 
out  for  this  purpose  by  nature  he  firmly  believed, 
and  thus  his  broad  views  of  the  general  benefit 
concurred  with  his  local  attachments  to  the  region 
of  his  nativity.     Should  we  look  to  natural  cir 
cumstances  alone,  we  should  be  inclined  to  think 
that  he  was  right.     The  broad  sestuary  of  the 
Chesapeake,  with  its  innumerable  bays,  presents 
an  extent  of  navigable  communication  far  greater 
than  all  the  streams  of  which  New-York  is  the  ap 
propriate  port.     Its  shores  were  then  far  more  fer 
tile  than  any  settled  part  of  the  northern  or  eastern 
states,  and  supported  a  greater  population  ;  and, 
in  addition  to  the  waters  already  navigable,  the 
Valley  of  the  Susquehanna  presented  the  shortest 
practicable   line   of   communication   by    artificial 
means   between    tide-water   and   streams   whose 
sources  interlocked  with  the  tributaries  of  the  St. 
Lawrence,  while,  through  those  of  James  River 
and  the  Kanhaway,  the  Ohio  is  approachable  in 
the  most  direct  line.     It  is  probably  fortunate  for 
the  City  of  New- York  that  the  state  of  the  times 
was  not  suited  to  enterprises  of  internal  improve 
ment  while  Washington  retained  his  paramount  in 
fluence  both  in  the  councils  of  the  general  govern 
ment  and  of  his  native  state.     It  is  also  fortunate 


140  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

that  the  jealousy  of  the  states  of  Pennsylvania 
and  Maryland  prevented,  until  recently,  the  exe 
cution  of  a  canal  in  the  lower  part  of  the  Valley 
of  the  Susquehanna ;  while,  under  false  views  of 
economy,  the  improvement  of  so  much  of  its  up 
per  course  as  lies  in  Pennsylvania  was  retarded 
and  opposed.  Clinton,  however,  warmly  as  he 
desired  the  welfare  of  his  native  state,  was  govern 
ed  by  no  exclusive  sectional  views,  and  carefully 
weighed  the  relative  advantages  of  the  routes  by 
the  Susquehanna  and  the  Mohawk,  with  a  view 
both  to  general  and  local  interests.  His  papers 
contain  memoranda  on  this  subject,  which  show 
the  attention  he  bestowed  upon  it.  When,  how 
ever,  the  State  of  Pennsylvania  awoke  to  a  sense  of 
its  true  interests,  Clinton  furthered,  by  all  the  means 
in  his  power,  the  success  of  an  application  for  fa 
cilities  by  which  the  artificial  navigations  of  the 
State  of  New-York  might  be  brought  into  connex 
ion  with  those  projected  in  the  Valley  of  the  Sus 
quehanna.  Not  content  with  this,  he  accepted  an 
invitation  to  visit  Pennsylvania,  to  enforce  by  his 
eloquence,  and  the  influence  of  his  presence,  the 
praiseworthy  attempts  of  the  patriotic  citizens  of 
that  state  in  urging  the  Legislature  to  emulate  the 
glories  and  benefits  of  the  New-York  canals. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  141 


CHAPTER  XL 

Western  Limit  of  the  early  Settlements  on  the 
Mohawk.  —  Claims  of  Massachusetts.  —  These 
Claims  are  partially  Admitted — Influx  of  Em- 
igration  from  New-England. — Voyage  of  the 
Wadsworths.  —  State  Roads.  —  Western  Inland 
Lock  Navigation  Company. — Its  slow  Progress 
and  unsuccessful  Result. — Communication  be 
tween  the  Hudson  and  Lake  Champlain. — 
Northern  Canal. 

AT  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  war,  the  ex 
treme  western  settlements  of  the  State  of  New- 
York  extended  only  a  short  distance  beyond  the 
Little  Falls  of  the  Mohawk.  Even  these  had 
been  disturbed  and  driven  in  during  the  war,  as 
was  Cherry  Valley,  which  had  been  the  scene  of 
a  massacre  by  the  united  forces  of  the  Indians  and 
Tories.  The  settlers  of  the  Valley  of  the  Mohawk, 
except  for  a  short  distance  above  Schenectady, 
were  all  of  German  blood.  A  relic  of  Palatines, 
driven  from  the  banks  of  the  Rhine  by  the  arms  of 
Louis  XIV.,  had  received  assistance  from  the  gov 
ernment  of  Queen  Anne,  and  had  been  directed  to 
the  Colony  of  New- York.  Their  earliest  seat  was 
on  the  Schoharie  Creek,  whence  for  several  years 


142  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

their  only  communication  with  the  other  parts  of 
the  colony  was  by  a  footpath,  over  which  their 
products  w^ere  carried  on  the  backs  of  men,  as 
was  even  the  grain  intended  to  be  ground  for  their 
own  consumption.  The  settlers  in  the  Valley  of 
the  Mohawk  made  use  of  the  river  as  far  as  Sche- 
nectady,  whence  a  tolerable  carriage-road  led  to 
Albany. 

The  cessation  of  hostilities  speedily  led  to  an 
extension  of  cultivation  as  far  as  the  Indian  title 
had  been  extinguished ;  and  the  enterprising  na 
tives  of  New-England  began  to  turn  their  eyes  to 
wards  the  new  countries  of  the  West,  as  a  recep 
tacle  for  the  swarms  of  their  teeming  population. 

The  State  of  Massachusetts  set  up  a  claim  both 
to  the  right  of  soil  and  of  government  of  all  the 
country  not  actually  occupied  which  lay  north  of 
the  forty-second  degree  of  latitude,  and  thus  tn 
all  that  part  of  the  state  which  lies  west  of  Utica. 
A  compromise  was  effected,  by  which  the  jurisdic 
tion  was  held  by  New-York,  but  the  right  of  soil 
to  a  large  portion  of  the  tract  was  vested  in  Mas 
sachusetts.  Much  of  this  was  almost  immediately 
sold  to  parties  who  undertook  to  extinguish  the  In 
dian  title. 

The  territory  which  New- York  had  retained  for 
itself,  namely,  all  lying  east  of  the  Seneca  Lake, 
and  extending  from  Lake  Ontario  southward  to  a 
line  nearly  coinciding  with  the  southern  end  of  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  143 

first-named  lake  was  divided  by  the  Legislature 
of  New-York  into  lots,  which  were  granted  to  the 
soldiers  and  officers  who  had  served  in  the  State 
line  during  the  Revolutionary  war.      The  state 
thus  departed  from  the  policy  of  the  colonial  gov 
ernment,  which  had  granted  large  tracts  and  man 
ors  to  a  few  favourites,  who  had  endeavoured  to 
perpetuate  the  system  of  leasehold  property.     Such 
a  tenure  was  repugnant  to  the  natives  of  New- 
England,  among  whom,  in  the  land  of  their  birth, 
it  was  unknown.      As  the  habits  of  soldiers  are 
rarely  adapted  to  the  purpose  of  clearing  and  set 
tling  a  wilderness,  many  of  their  lots  were  speedi 
ly  offered  in  the  market,  and  real  estate  in  fee  thus 
became  accessible  to  the  emigrant.     Even  where 
the  great  grants  made  by  the  State  of  Massachu 
setts  existed,  it  became  necessary  to  offer  the  lands 
for  sale  instead  of  attempting  to  lease  them. 

The  tide  of  emigration  was  thus  directed  into 
the  western  part  of  the  state.  Those  who  pro 
posed  to  settle  embarked  at  Schenectady  in  boats, 
and  followed  the  course  of  the  trader,  or  of  the 
Indians  themselves,  through  the  streams  and  over 
the  portages  we  have  described. 

Among  the  earliest  of  these  pioneers  of  civili 
zation  were  James  and  William  Wadsworth,  na 
tives  of  the  State  of  Connecticut,  wrho  left  their 
homes  at  an  early  age,  and  abandoned  the  society 
of  which,  by  their  education  and  connexions,  they 

M 


144  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

might  have  been  the  ornament,  for  the  purpose  of 
reclaiming  a  wilderness.      The  voyage  of  these 
enterprising  men,  by  the  Hudson,  which  had  not 
ceased  to  be  regarded  as  perilous,  and  through  the 
unimproved  water-courses,  which  have  been  de 
scribed,  would  furnish  a  tale  of  no  little  interest, 
while  the  record  of  their  persevering  and  success 
ful  labours  would  serve  as  an  admirable  lesson  to 
the  young   and  ambitious.     Understanding  fully 
the  prejudices  and  feelings  of  their  eastern  breth 
ren,  they  saw   that   no   region,  however  fertile, 
could  allure  them  to  settle  in  it,  if  they  could  not 
obtain  the  lands  on  other  terms  than  those  of  lease 
hold.     They  also  knew  that  the  greater  part  of 
the  emigrating  population  had  no  other  property 
than  their  own  strong  limbs  and  resolute  spirits, 
and  that  thus  they  could  not  purchase.     They,  in 
consequence,  introduced  the  system  of  contracts, 
by  which  the  industrious  could  be  assured  of  ob 
taining  the  fee  of  their  settlements  by  the  fruits  of 
their  labours,  while  the  landholder  was  secured  a 
fair  price  for  his  property.     This  method  speedily 
acquired  almost  universal  adoption,  and  has  con 
tributed  in  no  small  degree  to  peopling  the  west 
of  the  state  with  a  hardy  and  independent  popu 
lation.     It,  in  fact,  did  away  with  all  the  objec 
tions  to  the  immense  size  of  the  tracts  granted  by 
Massachusetts,  which  covered  all  the  country  west 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  145 

of  the  Seneca  Lake,  and  formed  what  would  other 
wise  have  been  an  odious  monopoly. 

The  modes  in  which  the  early  settlers  penetra 
ted  to  the  more  remote  points,  and  by  which  the 
foreign  products  that  have  become  the  neces 
saries  of  civilized  life  were  conveyed  to  them, 
were,  as  may  be  seen  from  the  account  of  the 
original  state  of  the  communications,  slow  and  la 
borious. 

The  growing  importance  of  the  region  demand 
ed  means  of  conveyance,  which,  if  not  cheaper, 
should  be  more  rapid,  and  the  state  was  induced 
to  make  a  road,  which,  taking  its  departure  from 
Utica,  was  gradually  extended  to  Buffalo.  With 
the  state  road,  two  lines  of  turnpike,  the  one  fol 
lowing  the  Valley  of  the  Mohawk,  the  other  pass 
ing  through  Cherry  Valley,  were  brought  into  com 
munication.  And,  by  means  of  these,  the  cost  of 
transportation  by  land  was  brought  to  a  price  as 
low  as  that  by  water,  in  spite  of  the  improvements 
which  were  made  in  the  navigation  in  the  interval. 

In  the  year  1792,  a  company  was  chartered  un 
der  the  name  of  the  Western  Inland  Lock  Navi 
gation  Company.  This  association  commenced  its 
operations  at  the  Little  Falls  of  the  Mohawk, 
around  which  a  short  canal,  with  a  number  of 
locks,  was  constructed ;  this  was  finished  in  1796. 
The  next  step  was  to  unite  the  Mohawk  with 
Wood  Creek  at  Fort  Stanwix;  and,  finally,  an  ob- 


146  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY, 

struction  in  the  Mohawk  at  German  Flats  was 
overcome  by  a  short  cut  and  two  locks.     With 
these  works,  the  improvements  of  the  company 
ceased  in  1799 ;  and,  although  the  charter  permit 
ted  the  extension  of  its  operations  to  the  Seneca 
Lake,  nothing  farther  was  done  except  in  the  way 
of  surveys  for  the  improvement  of  the  Oneida  out 
let.      Boats  carrying  seven  or  eight  tons  could, 
after  the  improvements  which  have  been  mention 
ed  were  finished,  make  their  way  from  the  head  of 
the  Cayuga  and  Seneca  Lakes  to  Schenectady; 
but  the  voyage  occupied  several  weeks,  and  was 
both   laborious  and  dangerous.      The   labour  of 
men  was  the  principal  dependance  for  progress, 
as  the  structure  of  the  vessels  allowed  sails  to  be 
used  only  when  the  wind  was  fair,  and  as  towing- 
paths  did  not  exist  on  any  part  of  the  communi 
cation.     The  return  was  still  more  difficult.     The 
Mohawk,  when  full,  could  hardly  be  ascended  at 
all,  and,  when  less  rapid,  was  so  much  interrupted 
by  shallows  and  bars  as  to  cause  the  most  annoy 
ing  delays,  and  to  render  it  necessary  to  limit  the 
upward  freight  to  little  more  than  half  of  that 
which  could  be  carried  down  the  stream.     Finally, 
the  necessity  of  discharging  at  Schenectady,  arid 
the  long  portage  thence  to  Albany,  gave  to  the 
route  by  water  but  little  advantage  in  cost  over 
that  by  the  roads,  while  it  was  vastly  more  te 
dious 


DEWITT     CLINTON  147 

In  this  state  the  communications  with  the  west 
ern  district  remained  until  the  Erie  Canal  was  com 
menced.  That  region,  expressly  suited  by  nature 
for  the  growth  of  wheat,  could  not  send  it  to 
market,  because  the  cost  of  transportation  from  all 
points  to  the  west  of  Lake  Cayuga  exceeded  the 
value  in  Albany.  The  fertile  district  beyond  this 
lake  was  therefore  either  to  be  condemned  to  sol 
itude,  or  to  be  thrown  into  dependance  on  the 
British  possessions  in  Canada.  But  this  danger 
was  not  limited  to  the  State  of  New-York;  the 
whole  of  the  shores  of  the  upper  lakes,  a  region  of 
much  greater  extent  and  almost  equal  fertility, 
was  in  the  same  position,  A  temporary  impulse 
was  given  to  the  cultivation  of  the  western  district 
during  the  war  of  1812,  when  the  demand  for  the 
supply  of  the  armies  brought  a  market  to  the  doors 
of  the  settlers ;  and  now,  for  the  first  time,  money 
entered  into  the  operation  of  trade,  which  had 
hitherto  consisted  of  little  more  than  barter  and 
credits  on  the  books  of  the  merchants.  In  1810, 
Buffalo  counted  only  forty  houses,  while  the  pres 
ent  site  of  Rochester  exhibited  a  clearing  of  a 
few  acres  and  a  single  log  house. 

The  statesman  who  took  the  lead  in  procuring 
the  act  of  incorporation  of  the  Western  Naviga 
tion  Company  was  General  Schuyler.  He  has 
not  hesitated  to  avow  his  obligations  for  hints  de 
rived  from  Elkanah  Watson ;  but  the  soul  of  the 


148  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

undertaking  existed  in  the  enterprising  merchants 
of  the  City  of  New-York,  who  were  willing  to  ad 
venture  their  capital  in  this  bold  undertaking. 
Among  these  are  particularly  to  be  noticed  Robert 
Bowne,  Thomas  Eddy,  and  John  Atkinson.  The 
operations  of  the  Western  Inland  Lock  Navigation 
Company  were  of  considerable  benefit  to  the  pub 
lic,  and,  until  the  roads  of  which  we  have  spoken 
were  constructed,  furnished  the  only  channel  for 
trade;  but  they  were  wholly  unproductive  to  their 
stockholders,  upon  some  of  whom  they  entailed 
ruin,  and  they  ceased  to  be  of  any  real  value  to 
the  public  after  the  system  of  turnpikes  was  in 
troduced,  except  by  maintaining  a  competition. 
The  inefficiency  of  the  operations  of  this  company 
grew  out  of  a  radical  defect  in  its  plans.  The  ob 
ject  which  was  kept  continually  in  view  was  that 
of  improving  the  navigation  of  natural  streams 
in  their  own  beds,  as  contradistinguished  to  the 
method  of  making  an  artificial  channel  to  serve  as 
a  substitute  for  the  stream  throughout  its  whole 
course,  with  its  obvious  extension  into  canals 
over  grounds  lying  far  from  any  natural  water 
course. 

So  long  as  mere  preliminary  calculations  were 
alone  resorted  to,  it  might  have  been  thought  best 
to  improve  the  means  afforded  by  nature  ;  the  ori 
ginal  cost  of  such  operations  is  the  least,  and  it 
might  be  hoped  that  the  low  rate  of  tolls  which 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  149 

would  be  the  consequence  would  more  than  com 
pensate  any  extra  cost  in  propelling  the  vessels. 
By  actual  trial,  however,  all  such  calculations  have 
been  shown  to  be  unfounded ;  for  the  difficulties 
and  delays  which  attend  a  navigation  in  the  bed  of 
a  stream,  subject  to  alternate  floods  and  droughts, 
are  such  as  to  set  all  calculations  at  defiance;  and 
the  uniform  result  of  experience  is,  that  the  trans 
portation  on  a  canal  wholly  artificial  is  far  less 
costly  than  any  attempt  at  improving  the  bed  of 
a  turbulent  and  variable  river.  It  is  probable, 
however,  that,  had  this  fact  been  well  understood, 
the  Western  Inland  Lake  Navigation  Company 
wrould  never  have  entered  upon  its  enterprise  ;  for 
the  capital  for  a  canal  even  from  Albany  to  Utica 
could  not  have  been  collected  among  individuals 
at  so  early  a  date,  and  a  knowledge  of  the  true 
state  of  the  case  would  have  prevented  the  little 
that  was  subscribed  from  being  contributed.  The 
ill  success  of  this  enterprise  was  made  use  of  as  an 
argument  against  any  farther  operations;  and  it 
was  urged  that,  where  individual  enterprise  had 
failed,  the  state  could  not  hope  to  be  successful. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  was  fortunate  that  this  en 
terprise  had  not  been  attended  with  such  profitable 
results  as  to  induce  its  proprietors  to  desire  to  re 
tain  the  chartered  privileges  they  possessed,  and 
thus  to  prevent  action  on  the  part  of  the  state.  It 
would,  in  truth,  have  been  a  most  disastrous  cir- 


150  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

cumstance  had  this  great  line  of  internal  commu 
nication  become  private  property.  The  delays, 
which  the  public  did  not  regard,  and  the  obstacles, 
which  the  sovereign  power  overcame  with  facili 
ty,  would  have  disheartened  a  private  association 
or  prevented  its  progress ;  but,  in  the  event  of 
complete  success,  a  monopoly  would  have  been 
created  which  would  have  had  interests  very  dif 
ferent  from  those  of  the  public,  and  a  continual 
struggle,  fatal  perhaps  to  the  one,  and  injurious  to 
the  other,  must  have  been  the  result. 

It  has  been  reserved  for  the  experience  of  the 
State  of  New-York,  when  compared  with  that  of 
some  of  its  neighbours,  to  exhibit  the  advantage  of 
keeping  the  great  lines  of  internal  communication 
in  the  hands  of  the  sovereign  power.  It  has  also 
solved  the  question  of  the  propriety  of  contracting 
a  debt  to  be  applied  to  the  purposes  of  public  im 
provement.  The  experience  of  New-York  has, 
indeed,  been  more  fortunate  than  could  have  been 
anticipated;  for  the  interest  of  the  debt  has  not 
:nly  been  paid,  but  the  principal  in  a  great  meas 
ure  extinguished  by  the  profits  of  the  enterprise. 
But  it  hardly  requires  a  demonstration  to  prove 
that,  even  had  the  New-York  canals  failed  to  pay 
the  interest  on  their  cost,  the  state  must  still  have 
derived  a  benefit,  wThich  would  have  rendered  a 
tax  to  pay  this  interest  no  real  burden  to  the  com 
munity  ;  and  we  shall  find  it  recorded,  to  the  credit 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  151 

both  of  the  subject  of  our  memoir  and  of  the  Le 
gislature  of  the  state,  that,  when  the  practicability 
of  the  canals  was  once  ascertained,  a  resort  even 
to  direct  taxation,  that  bugbear  of  aspiring  politi 
cians,  would  not  have  been  a  barrier  to  their  pro 
ceedings. 

Besides  the  route  from  Albany  to  the  westward, 
the  continuous  valleys  of  the  upper  Hudson  and 
Lake  Champlain  pointed  out  a  channel  for  an  arti 
ficial  navigation  to  the  north.  There  was  a  time 
when  the  latter  appeared  even  more  important  than 
the  former.  It  was,  when  the  subject  of  canals  first 
attracted  the  attention  of  the  Legislature,  the  seat 
of  a  more  dense  population  and  more  extensive 
commerce.  Circumstances  in  the  soil  and  climate, 
however,  have  prevented  this  region  from  increas 
ing  in  wealth  as  rapidly  as  the  West.  The  line  of 
the  Hudson  attracted  attention  even  earlier  than 
that  of  the  Mohawk,  and  was  intended  to  have 
been  rendered  practicable  by  a  lock  navigation, 
under  a  charter  granted  the  same  year  as  that  of 
the  Western  Inland  Lock  Navigation  Company. 
It  was  also  improved  by  the  state  at  the  same  time 
with  the  Erie  Canal;  but  the  results  and  conse 
quences  of  this  enterprise  fell  far  short  of  those  of 
the  Western  Canal.  We  shall  not  have  occasion 
to  refer  to  them  hereafter,  but  can  speak  of  the 
Northern  Canal  as  a  most  praiseworthy  enterprise, 


152  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

which  has  fulfilled  every  expectation  that  could 
have  reasonably  been  formed  in  respect  to  it. 

It  is  in  its  bearing  upon  the  defence  of  the  coun 
try  that  the  importance  of  the  Champlain  Canal  is 
most  apparent.  The  United  States  is  more  vulner 
able  by  the  line  of  that  lake  and  the  Hudson  than 
in  any  other  part,  and  in  two  successive  wars  the 
British  government  has  chosen  it  for  the  direction 
of  hostile  operations.  At  present,  by  the  aid  of 
steam  communications  on  the  river  and  lake,  and 
of  the  canal  which  joins  them,  the  same  army  may 
be  ready  to  act,  as  circumstances  may  direct,  in  the 
deferyce  of  the  City  of  New-York,  or  on  the  North 
ern  frontier  ;  and  within  four  days,  a  body  of  troops 
collected  on  the  seacoast  to  oppose  invasion,  may, 
if  the  danger  of  descent  be  over,  be  threatening 
Montreal  or  moving  upon  Quebec.  The  latter  is 
the  key  of  the  more  valuable  British  possessions ; 
and,  should  hostilities  again  arise,  it  is  hardly 
probable  that,  in  defiance  of  the  experience  of 
the  late  war,  the  importance  of  acting  against  it, 
to  the  exclusion  of  all  other  objects,  will  be  over 
looked. 


DEWJTT     CLINTON.  ]53 


CHAPTER  XII. 

"       ir   I 


Earliest  Legislation  of  the  State  of  New-York 
in  relation  to  Canals.  —  Petition  of  Colles. — 
Report  of  Jeffrey  Smith. — Messages  of  George 
Clinton. — Resolution  of  Judge  Forman. — Sur 
vey  made  by  Geddes,  who  first  demonstrated  the 
Practicability  of  a  Route  to  Lake  Erie. — Es- 
says  of  Jesse  Hawley.  —  Resolution  of  Judge 
Platt. — Appointment  of  a  Board  of  Commis 
sioners,  of  which  Clinton  is  one. — Character  of 
Morris,  the  senior  Commissioner. — Notice  of 
the  other  Commissioners. 

MUCH  discussion  has  been  held,  and  innumera 
ble  tracts  have  been  published,  in  respect  to  the 
merit  of  projecting  or  carrying  into  effect  the  ca 
nal  policy  of  the  State  of  New- York.  The  great 
er  part  of  these  have  grown  out  of  mutual  mis 
understandings  of  the  terms  and  subject  of  the 
dispute.  It  never  has  been  doubted,  that  not  only 
a  few  distinguished  individuals,  but  even  thousands 
of  public-spirited  citizens,  have  contributed,  with 
the  whole  force  of  their  talents  and  influence,  to 
the  progress  and  completion  of  the  canals,  yet  no 
one  of  these  was  either  so  efficient  or  so  influential 
as  in  any  way  to  impair  the  claim  set  up  for  Clin- 

"^ 


154  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

ton  as  having  associated  his  name  in  imperishable 
characters  with  that  of  the  great  system  of  inter 
nal  improvements,  of  which  the  Erie  Canal  is  the 
chief. 

The  earliest  legislative  action  in  relation  to  ca 
nals  in  the  State  of  New- York  was  in  1784.  An 
engineer  of  the  name  of  Colles,  who,  before  the 
Revolution,  had  been  employed  in  an  unsuccess 
ful  attempt  to  supply  the  City  of  New-York  with 
water,  petitioned  the  Legislature  to  aid  him  in  an 
attempt  to  remove  obstructions  in  the  Mohawk 
River.  A  favourable  report  was  made,  but  no  le 
gislative  action  followed.  In  the  succeeding  year 
he  obtained  a  grant  of  $125  for  the  purpose  "of 
enabling  him  to  make  an  essay  towards  the  removal 
of  these  obstructions,  and  making  a  plan  thereof." 
During  the  next  session  (1786),  and,  as  it  appears, 
in  pursuance  of  the  plan  of  Colles,  a  bill  was  in 
troduced  by  Mr.  Jeffrey  Smith,  of  Long  Island, 
"  for  improving  the  navigation  of  the  Mohawk 
River,  Wood  Creek,  and  Onondago  River,  with  a 
view  of  opening  an  inland  navigation  to  Oswrego, 
and  for  extending  the  same,  if  practicable,  to  Lake 
Erie."  This  bill  did  not  become  a  law.  In  it  we 
find  the  firsf-idea  of  extending  a  navigable  com 
munication  to  Lake  Erie,  but  the  route  by  Os- 
wego  and  Lake  Ontario  is  evidently  the  one  point 
ed  out. 

Governor  George  Clinton,  in  the  year  1791, 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  155 

called  the  attention  of  the  Legislature  to  the  im 
portance  of  internal  communications  in  general. 
The  committee  to  whom  this  part  of  the  speech 
was  referred,  reported  a  law,  in  which,  among  oth 
er  things,  provision  was  made  for  a  survey  of  the 
ground  between  the  Mohawk  and  Wood  Creek, 
and  farther  proceedings  wrere  held  which  led  to  no 
valuable  result.  In  1792,  the  governor  referred  to 
the  report  made  under  the  law  of  the  preceding 
session,  and  again  called  the  attention  of  the  Le 
gislature  to  the  subject.  The  result  of  their  ac 
tion  has  been  already  spoken  of,  as  the  law  incor 
porating  the  "  Western  Inland  Lock  Navigation 
Company." 

From  this  time  no  farther  action  in  respect  to 
canals  was  had,  either  by  the  executive  or  the  Le 
gislature  of  the  state,  until  1808,  when  Judge  For- 
man,  at  that  time  a  member  of  the  Legislature 
from  Onondago  county,  proposed  a  concurrent 
resolution,  to  direct  a  survey  to  be  made  of  the 
"  most  eligible  and  direct  route  for  a  canal  from 
the  Hudson  River  to  Lake  Erie."  Judge  Forman 
himself  has  stated,  that  he  was  led  to  propose  this 
inquiry  in  consequence  of  his  perusal  of  the  article 
"  Canal"  in  Rees's  Encyclopedia,  in  which  he  found 
a  full  exposition  of  the  advantages  of  canals  over 
attempts  to  improve  the  navigation  of  rivers ;  and 
that  he  therefore  conceived  a  preference  to  a  con 
tinuous  communication,  over  the  extension  of  the 


156  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

operations  of  the  Western  Inland  Lock  Navigation 
Company  and  the  lockage  around  the  Falls  of  Ni 
agara,  for  the  last  of  which  an  act  of  incorpora 
tion  had  been  obtained  from  the  Legislature.  The 
resolution  was  passed,  the  survey  was  made  by 
Judge  Geddes,  and  the  perfect  practicability  of  the 
route  demonstrated ;  yet  the  discovery  of  this  most 
important  fact  led  to  no  result,  nor  does  it  even  ap 
pear  to  have  influenced  the  subsequent  action  of 
the  Legislature. 

We  have  now  to  return  to  the  publication  of  a 
series  of  essays,  which,  although  neglected  when 
published,  and  for  a  long  time  forgotten,  had  an  in 
fluence  which  the  practicable  plan  and  available 
surveys  of  Judge  Geddes  had  not.  Jesse  Hawley, 
in  the  year  1807,  wrote  a  number  of  papers  under 
the  signature  of  Hercules,  which  appeared  in  the 
Genesee  Messenger.  In  these  essays  he  proposes 
a  canal  from  Lake  Erie  to  the  Hudson,  to  be  con 
structed  from  its  origin  in  that  lake  to  Utica,  upon 
the  principle  of  an  inclined  plane.  His  project  is 
founded  on  the  report  of  Mr.  Elliot,  the  agent  of 
the  Holland  Land  Company,  in  relation  to  the 
character  of  the  mountain  ridge,  and  on  the  belief 
that  on  the  northern  face  of  that  elevation  a  con 
tinuous  level  existed  throughout  the  whole  length 
of  Lake  Ontario.  We  shall  see  that  this  inference 
was  very  far  from  being  correct.  The  plan  wras  a 
most  brilliant  conception  of  genius,  but  was  im- 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  157 

practicable  in  consequence  of  the  existence  of  an 
unknown  but  absolutely  insuperable  obstacle.  The 
quantity  of  information  which  is  collected  in  these 
essays  is  remarkable,  and  is  even  now  of  great 
value,  both  as  respects  the  direct  object  in  view, 
and  the  experience  of  foreign  countries.  There 
can  indeed  be  no  better  proof  of  the  importance 
of  an  established  reputation  in  giving  currency  to 
a  work,  than  the  fact  that  these  essays,  so  replete 
with  learning  and  indicative  of  a  high  order  of 
genius,  should  have  produced  no  sensation. 

In  1809,  Mr.  Thomas  Eddy,  on  behalf  of  the 
Western  Inland  Lock  Navigation  Company,  pro 
ceeded  to  Albany  for  the  purpose  of  procuring  the 
passage  of  a  law  authorizing  the  appointment  of 
commissioners  to  explore  a  route  for  a  canal  from 
Oneida  Lake  to  Seneca  River,  with  a  view  to  the 
execution  of  the  canal  by  that  company.  At  that 
moment  Judge  Platt  was  the  acknowledged  leader 
of  the  federal  party  in  the  Senate,  and  its  nomina 
ted  candidate  for  the  office  of  governor.  To  him 
Eddy,  who  was  his  political  adherent,  applied  for 
his  influence  in  obtaining  the  passage  of  the  pro 
posed  law. 

Judge  Platt,  who  had  long  been  a  resident  of 
the  western  part  of  the  state,  and  knew,  perhaps, 
better  than  any  other  person,  its  wants  and  wishes ; 
who  had,  as  it  appears,  long  considered  the  policy 
which  the  state  ought  to  pursue  in  the  premises, 


158  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

replied  at  once,  "  That  the  company  had  disap 
pointed  public  expectation,  and  that  it  would  be 
inauspicious  to  present  any  project  which  should 
be  subject  to  that  corporation."  As  a  substitute, 
he  proposed  a  plan  for  instituting  a  board  of  com 
missioners  to  examine  and  survey  the  whole  route 
from  the  Hudson  to  Lake  Ontario,  and  to  Lake 
Erie  also.  Mr.  Eddy  having  been  satisfied  that 
this  plan  was  to  be  preferred,  it  was  agreed,  on 
the  suggestion  of  Judge  Platt,  to  call  Clinton 
forthwith  into  their  councils.  He,  as  we  have 
seen,  held  at  that  moment  a  preponderating  in 
fluence  with  the  democratic  party ;  and,  as  the  ob 
ject  involved  no  party  views,  not  only  Eddy,  but 
Platt  also,  was  satisfied  of  the  propriety  of  obtain 
ing  his  sanction. 

It  is  one  of  those  things  which  augur  best  for 
the  permanence  of  our  institutions,  that,  however 
imbiltered  may  have  been  the  disputes  of  mere 
party  politics,  however  loudly  the  underlings  and 
hack  writers  of  factions  may  have  declaimed 
against  the  motives  and  characters  of  their  adver 
saries,  no  sooner  does  danger  threaten  the  coun 
try,  or  is  a  scheme  of  real  advantage  presented, 
than  the  leaders  of  the  opposing  parties  resort  to 
each  other  as  the  most  likely  supporters  of  the 
necessary  measures.  Here  was  an  occasion  in 
which  an  astute  politician  might  have  seen  an 
easy  opportunity  of  winning  popularity  and  ac- 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  159 

cumulating  electioneering  capital ;  yet  Platt  sought 
Clinton  as  the  first  person  to  whom  his  scheme  was 
to  be  imparted.  On  the  other  hand,  Clinton  could 
not  have  been  insensible  to  the  fact  that  the 
scheme  was  one  on  which  it  could  be  easy,  as 
was  afterward  done,  to  shower  down  the  most 
pointed  ridicule,  and  to  convert  its  proposal  by 
Platt  into  an  engine  of  political  warfare.  These 
distinguished  men,  however,  forgot  all  except  its 
bearing  on  the  prosperity  of  their  country,  and  dis 
cussed  the  plan  only  in  its  relations  to  the  public 
welfare.  The  result  of  the  interview  was,  that 
Platt  forthwith  presented  in  the  Senate  a  resolu 
tion  for  the  appointment  of  commissioners,  and 
the  resolution  was  seconded  by  Clinton.  By  the 
aid  of  their  joint  efforts,  the  resolution  passed  both 
houses;  and  Gouverneur  Morris,  Dewitt  Clinton, 
Stephen  Van  Rensselaer,  Simeon  Dewitt,  Peter  B. 
Porter,  William  North,  and  Thomas  Eddy,  wrere 
named  commissioners.  Care  was  taken  to  take 
the  names  alternately  from  the  two  opposing  par 
ties  ;  while  Eddy  himself,  who  closed  the  list,  al 
though  a  federalist,  was  not  an  active  partisan. 

Morris  was  named  by  Judge  Platt  in  conse 
quence  of  the  high  standing  which  he  held  in  his 
party.  Distinguished  by  his  descent  from  a  family 
possessed  of  manorial  privileges,  and  the  heir  of 
an  ample  fortune,  he  had,  at  an  early  age,  thrown 
himself,  with  all  the  ardour  of  youth  and  the  en- 

N 


160  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

thusiasm  of  genius,  into  the  cause  of  the  Revolution, 
and,  abandoning  his  home,  had  become  domicilia- 
ted  in  Pennsylvania.  This  state  he  had  repre 
sented  in  Congress  under  the  confederation,  and 
had  been  associated  with  Robert  Morris  in  the 
schemes  of  finance  by  which  the  Revolutionary 
war  was  brought  to  a  happy  issue.  In  the  con 
vention  which  framed  the  existing  Constitution  he 
had  filled  a  useful  place ;  and,  on  its  adoption,  had 
been  nominated  by  Washington  ambassador  to 
France.  Here  he  replaced  Jefferson,  who  was  re 
called  to  fill  the  high  post  of  Secretary  of  State. 
While  in  France,  Morris  became  disgusted  with 
the  excesses  of  the  popular  party,  and  disappoint 
ed  their  hopes  of  gaining  the  countenance  of  the 
representative  of  the  republic  whose  successful  re 
sistance  to  royal  power  they  for  a  time  held  up  as 
a  model.  When  that  party  acquired  the  ascend 
ancy,  his  unpopularity  with  it  was  such  as  to  ren 
der  it  expedient  that  he  should  be  recalled. 

On  his  return  he  retired  to  his  paternal  estate, 
and  rebuilt  the  mansion  of  his  ancestors  ruined  by 
the  British  troops.  From  this  retirement  he  was 
speedily  called  to  represent  his  native  state  in  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States,  where  we  have  seen 
him  at  the  same  time  the  colleague  and  the  oppo 
nent  of  Clinton. 

Morris  was  endued  by  nature  with  all  the  at 
tributes  necessary  to  the  accomplished  orator ;  a 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  16 1 

fine  and  commanding  person,  a  most  graceful  de 
meanour,  which  was  rather  heightened  than  im 
paired  by  the  loss  of  one  of  his  legs ;  a  voice  of 
much  compass,  strength,  and  richness.  These 
natural  advantages  he  had  carefully  cultivated; 
grounded  in  classical  literature  in  a  manner  far 
beyond  what  was  then  usual  in  America,  he  had 
continued  to  peruse  the  orators  and  poets  of  an 
tiquity  ;  familiar  with  more  than  one  living  lan 
guage,  he  was  acquainted  with  all  the  best  pro 
ductions  of  modern  literature. 

For  style  as  literary  productions,  and  still  more 
for  the  manner  of  their  delivery,  his  speeches 
would  have  held  no  mean  rank  among  the  pro 
ductions  he  studied  as  models.  He  thus  acquired 
an  influence  among  persons  who  were  his  equals 
in  all  but  the  external  graces  and  embellishments 
of  oratory,  which  at  the  present  moment  appears 
extraordinary;  and  with  a  self-confidence  which 
never  deserted  him,  often  arrogated  to  himself  a 
higher  place  than  they,  when  out  of  the  sphere  of 
his  fascination,  would  have  been  willing  to  assign 
him. 

But,  while  thus  qualified  by  natural  gifts  and 
careful  study  to  acquire  an  influence,  he  wanted 
all  the  sound  knowledge  which  was  necessary  in 
the  office  to  which  he  was  now  appointed.  With 
a  feeling  not  unusual  in  classical  scholars,  he 
looked  with  contempt  on  the  sciences,  which 


162  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

were  then  beginning  to  be  brought  into  the  ser 
vice  of  industry,  and  which  have  since  produced 
such  astonishing  revolutions  in  the  state  of  the 
civilized  world.  If,  then,  of  all  men  living,  he 
was  the  best  qualified  to  exhibit  in  a  popular  light 
the  advantages  with  which  the  adoption  of  a  sys 
tem  of  internal  improvements  would  be  attended, 
he  was,  perhaps,  among  all  who  could  have  been 
selected,  the  worst  for  the  purpose  of  entering  into 
the  painful  and  laborious  investigations  on  which 
alone  a  true  exposition  of  these  advantages  could 
be  foimded,  and  on  which  the  actual  practicability 
of  a  canal  from  Albany  to  Lake  Erie  would  prin 
cipally  rest. 

Morris  had  directed  his  thoughts  at  an  early 
period  to  the  navigable  communications  of  the 
State  of  New-York;  and  evidence  is  extant  that, 
even  before  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  war, 
he  had  declaimed  with  his  accustomed  eloquence 
upon  the  capabilities  which  existed  for  the  exten 
sion  of  its  internal  trade.  In  the  year  1801  he 
had  visited  Niagara.  His  route  was  by  the  way 
of  Oswego  to  Lake  Ontario,  and  along  that  lake 
to  the  Niagara  River. 

The  vivid  impressions  of  the  scenery,  soil,  and 
climate  which  he  received  on  this  journey,  are 
delineated  in  a  letter  which  he  wrote  on  his  re 
turn  to  his  friend  David  Parish,  of  Hamburgh ; 
and  in  obvious  reference  to  the  route  which  he 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  163 

had  traversed,  points  out  the  possibility  of  ma 
king  a  communication  for  the  passage  of  ships 
from  the  upper  lakes  to  the  Hudson. 

This  letter  is  a  finished  piece  of  eloquence, 
wanting,  in  truth,  only  metrical  form  to  be  classed 
as  a  fine  specimen  of  descriptive  poetry.  It  has 
been  more  than  once  published,  for  the  purpose  of 
proving  him  to  have  been  the  original  projector  of 
the  substitution  of  a  canal  for  the  communication 
by  Lake  Ontario.  But,  although  the  mere  words 
of  the  passage  which  speaks  of  this  navigation 
might  be  susceptible  of  such  an  interpretation,  it  is 
very  clear  from  the  context  that  he  entertained  no 
such  idea. 

The  idea  of  ships  sailing  from  the  great  West 
ern  inland  seas  to  the  Hudson  is  in  keeping  with 
the  lockage  of  the  Falls  of  Niagara,  and  the  im 
provement  of  the  navigation  of  the  Oswego  and 
Mohawk  Rivers,  but  it  is  utterly  at  variance  with 
the  idea  of  a  continuous  canal. 

Having  already  given  utterance  to  a  prediction 
that  vessels  would  descend  from  the  upper  lakes 
to  the  Hudson,  it  will  not  surprise  us  to  find  Mor 
ris  entering  into  the  execution  of  the  duties  of  his 
office  of  canal  commissioner  with  a  zeal  that  dis 
tanced  the  more  cautious  movements  of  his  less 
excitable  colleagues. 

We  cannot,  however,  but  consider  that  the  en 
terprise  was  not  furthered  by  the  appointment  of 


164  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

Morris,  and  that  the  public  mind  would  have  been 
more  easily  satisfied  of  the  feasibility  of  the  project 
of  the  canal,  had  Judge  Platt  permitted  himself 
to  be  named  on  the  commission  instead  of  Morris. 
With  his  sound  and  steady  judgment,  it  would 
have  been  impossible  that  any  plan  bearing  im 
practicability  on  its  face  should  have  been  laid 
before  the  public.  Platt,  however,  seems  to  have 
shrunk  with  innate  modesty  from  assuming  the  first 
place  on  a  commission  established  by  a  resolution 
drawn  by  himself.  Here,  therefore,  all  direct 
agency  on  his  part  in  the  canal  policy  of  the  state 
seems  to  have  ceased;  yet  he  is  well  entitled  to 
the  merit  of  having  made  the  first  efficacious  step 
towards  the  attainment  of  the  great  object  of  uni 
ting  the  lakes  with  the  Atlantic. 

The  remaining  members  of  the  commission  are 
well  and  advantageously  known  to  the  world.  In 
particular,  Stephen  Van  Rensselaer  ought  to  be 
cited,  for  the  long,  steady  attention  which  he  de 
voted  to  the  furtherance  of  internal  improvements. 
From  this  time  to  the  day  of  his  death  he  was 
strenuous  in  the  promotion  of  the  cause,  and  held, 
from  the  date  when  the  actual  construction  of  the 
canals  was  commenced,  the  office  of  a  commission 
er.  The  last  person  who  inherited  an  entailed  es 
tate  before  the  system  was  swept  away  by  the  Rev 
olution,  he  was  for  many  years  the  sole  surviver  of 
the  ancient  aristocracy ;  yet  such  was  the  affabil- 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  165 

ity  of  his  manners  and  the  benevolence  of  his  dis 
position,  that  he  enjoyed  deserved  popularity  with 
those  most  democratic  in  their  principles.  Possess 
ed  of  an  estate  which  had  descended  to  him  from 
the  first  projector  of  a  settlement  for  any  purpose 
but  trade  on  the  banks  of  the  Hudson,  he  exerci 
sed  his  powers  as  landlord  with  such  moderation 
as  to  secure  the  devoted  attachment  of  his  ten 
antry. 

In  the  cause  of  internal  improvement  he  not 
only  aided  by  his  services  as  canal  commissioner, 
but  lent  his  powerful  name  and  embarked  funds 
in  the  earliest  project  of  a  railroad,  the  first  link 
of  that  chain  which,  running  parallel  to  the  Erie 
Canal,  will,  by  facilitating  personal  communica 
tion,  enhance  its  benefits. 

Simeon  Dewitt  had  served  with  distinction  as 
an  engineer  during  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  at 
a  time  when  the  learning  required  in  that  branch 
of  the  service  was  extremely  rare.  He  held,  from 
the  close  of  the  Revolution  to  the  time  of  his  death, 
the  office  of  surveyor-general  to  the  state,  and  un 
der  his  direction,  among  other  important  duties, 
the  great  survey  of  the  military  townships  was  ac 
complished  ;  a  work  which,  from  its  extreme  accu 
racy,  has  prevented  all  disputes  about  boundaries 
among  the  landholders  of  that  region. 

Eddy  has  been  already  mentioned  as  a  director 
of  the  Western  Inland  Lock  Navigation  Company, 


166  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

and  was,  at  the  moment,  looked  to  as  the  practical 
man  of  the  commission,  in  which  respect  the  ap 
pointment  was  certainly  his  due. 

Peter  B.  Porter  had  distinguished  himself  by  a 
very  able  speech,  delivered  in  the  House  of  Repre 
sentatives,  in  support  of  a  resolution  introduced  by 
himself,  directing  an  inquiry  into  the  propriety  of 
appropriating  the  proceeds  of  a  part  of  the  public 
lands  to  purposes  of  internal  improvement.  A 
resident  of  the  extreme  western  portion  of  the 
state,  he  had  collected  a  vast  amount  of  valuable 
information ;  and,  although  he  finally  differed  from 
his  colleagues  in  relation  to  the  comparative  merits 
of  the  Ontario  and  Erie  routes,  his  aid  was  not  un 
important  in  the  early  stages  of  the  inquiry. 

General  North  had  served  with  great  reputation 
in  the  Revolutionary  war,  and  by  his  talents,  his 
landed  property,  and  the  remembrances  of  his  mil 
itary  actions,  was  deservedly  possessed  of  great  in 
fluence,  both  politically  and  morally. 

Of  such  materials  was  the  commission  formed, 
and  the  results  of  its  operations  justified  the  Le 
gislature  in  the  wisdom  of  its  selections. 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  167 


CHAPTER  XHL 

The  Canal  Commissioners  undertake  to  examine 
the  Route.— Clinton  and  others  proceed  by  Wa 
ter  from  Schenectady.* — Their  Progress  to  Ge 
neva,  after  a  Demotion  to  Oswego. — Journey  by 
Land  to  Niagara,  and  return  to  Jllbany  by  the 
way  of  Ithaca. — Meetings  of  the  Commission 
ers  at  Utica  and  Chippeway. —  Diversity  of 
Opinion  in  the  Board. — Opinion  of  Morris* — 
Clinton's  Views  prevail  in  the  Board. — Report 
drawn  up  by  Mr.  Morris. — Examination  of  its 
Features  and  Consequences. 

THE  commissioners  appointed  under  the  resolu 
tion  of  Judge  Platt  entered  forthwith  on  the  duties 
of  their  office.  Surveys  were  directed  to  be  made, 
under  the  superintendence  of  Simeon  Dewitt,  the 
surveyor-general  of  the  state,  who  was  a  member 
of  the  board ;  and  the  commissioners  resolved  to 
proceed  personally  to  examine  the  country.  In 
most  cases  this  is  an  empty  ceremony.  The  best 
qualified  and  most  practised  engineers  can  decide 
little  by  the  eye  alone ;  and  those  who  have  not 
the  habit  of  judging  of  levels  and  distances  will 
be  wholly  at  fault.  The  plans  of  public  improve 
ments  must  therefore  be  decided  upon  in  the  cabi- 

O 


168  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

net  by  reference  to  accurate  profiles  and  maps,  and 
not  in  the  field.  In  the  present  instance,  a  formal 
progress  of  the  commissioners  through  the  region 
to  be  examined  was  of  vital  importance.  It  was 
necessary  to  arouse  the  attention  of  the  people  to 
the  importance  of  the  object,  and  excite  a  curiosi 
ty  which  should  lead  to  the  study  of  the  benefits 
likely  to  flow  from  the  completion  of  the  project. 

The  expediency  of  such  a  progress  having  been 
decided,  the  month  of  July  (1810)  was  appointed 
for  the  purpose ;  and  it  was  agreed  that  Morris  and 
Van  Rensselaer  should  proceed  by  land,  wrhile 
Clinton,  with  the  rest  of  the  commissioners  and  a 
corps  of  surveyors,  should  take  the  Mohawk  at 
Shenectady,  and  follow  the  existing  lines  of  com 
munication  as  far  as  practicable. 

The  survey  of  the  most  important  part  of  the 
route  was  intrusted  to  Judge  Geddes,  who  had  al 
ready  explored  a  part  of  it. 

Clinton  and  Eddy  left  New-York  on  the  30th 
of  June  in  the  steamboat  for  Albany.  This  voy 
age  occupied,  as  was  usual  in  that  early  period  of 
steam  navigation,  upward  of  thirty  hours  The 
2d  of  July  was  occupied  in  a  meeting  of  the  board, 
and  laying  in  stores  and  equipage  for  the  voyage ; 
the  3d  in  reaching  Schenectady,  and  it  was  not 
until  the  afternoon  of  the  4th  that  the  party  em 
barked,  Two  boats  were  provided  for  their  ac 
commodation,  ope  of  which  was  occupied  by  the 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  169 

commissioners,  the  other  by  servants  and  baggage, 
Of  the  latter  there  was  about  a  ton  and  a  half,  as 
it  was  necessary  to  carry  almost  every  article  of 
ordinary  comfort.  The  party  suffered  from  having 
trusted  to  the  sleeping  quarters  which  were  pre 
sented  on  the  route,  and  would  have  experienced 
less  fatigue  had  it  been  provided  in  addition  with 
tents.  The  boats  were  of  the  burden  of  about 
ten  tons,  were  provided  with  sails  to  use  when  the 
wind  was  fair,  and  were  propelled  on  other  occa 
sions  by  setting  poles.  In  using  these,  the  men 
walked  along  a  gangway  formed  for  the  purpose 
on  the  gunwale,  and  pressed  against  the  poles 
with  their  shoulders.  The  boats  were  without 
decks,  but  were  sheltered  by  an  awning  and  cur 
tains.  The  party  within  had  sufficient  space  to  sit 
and  read  or  write,  but  there  was  not  room  to  spread 
their  beds. 

The  river  was  low,  and,  although  the  boats  were 
light,  the  passage  of  several  of  the  rapids  was  at 
tended  with  difficulty.  Utica,  therefore,  was  not 
reached  until  late  on  the  evening  of  the  fifth  day. 

The  parties  of  Morris  and  Van  Rensselaer  occu 
pied  the  whole  of  the  principal  hotel  in  Utica,  and 
the  voyagers  took  their  lodging  at  another.  At 
the  present  day  the  same  hotel  has  been  enlarged 
until  it  can  conveniently  lodge  several  hundred 
guests,  and  there  are  three  or  four  others  of  almost 
equal  extent  In  1810,  the  regular  public  com- 


170  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

munication  between  Albany  and  Utica  was  by  a 
single  daily  stage,  which  was  thirty-six  hours  in 
performing  the  journey.  From  Utica  to  Geneva 
the  stage  ran  only  three  times  a  week,  while  be 
yond  that  point  none  had  been  established. 

The  freight  of  goods  by  the  river  to  Schenecta- 
dy  was  seventy-five  cents  per  ton,  the  carriage  by 
wagon  a  dollar  per  ton. 

Utica  at  that  time  contained  300  houses,  inhab 
ited  by  1650  persons. 

A  meeting  of  the  board  was  held  on  the  10th 
July  at  Utica,  which  adjourned  to  reassemble  at 
Rome  on  the  12th. 

At  Utica,  General  North  and  Judge  Geddes 
joined  the  party  in  the  boats,  and,  leaving  Utica  on 
the  llth,  the  commissioners  reached  Rome  the 
same  day.  Here  the  proposed  meeting  was  held, 
and  an  incident  occurred  in  the  discussion  which 
we  shall  refer  to  on  a  future  occasion. 

At  Rome  the  routes  by  land  and  water  separa 
ted,  and  the  next  place  of  meeting  was  fixed  for 
Geneva.  The  party  in  the  boats  passing  the  cut 
at  Fort  Stanvvix,  entered  and  descended  Wood 
Creek,  traversed  the  Oneida  Lake,  and,  running 
down  its  rapid  outlet,  reached  Three  River  Point 
before  sundown  on  the  15th  July.  Thence  they 
followed  the  stream  to  Oswego,  which  they  reach 
ed  the  next  evening. 

A  day  was  spent  in  examining  the  neighbour- 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  171 

hood  of  Oswego,  and  on  the  morning  of  the  18th 
the  commissioners  proceeded  on  foot  up  the  bank 
of  the  river  for  five  miles,  in  order  to  facilitate 
the  passage  of  the  boats  up  the  rapids.  Re-em 
barking,  Three  River  Point  was  reached  at  two 
o'clock  on  the  19th,  and  the  Seneca  River  enter 
ed.  This  was  found  to  be  a  dead  and  sluggish 
stream  until  its  confluence  with  the  Cayuga  out 
let  was  passed,  whence  there  was  a  rise  of  fifty 
feet  into  the  Seneca  Lake.  Geneva  was  not 
reached  until  the  afternoon  of  the  24th,  and  at  the 
close  of  the  twentieth  day  after  leaving  Schenec- 
tady.  Deducting  the  three  days  spent  in  the  de 
viation  to  Oswego,  seventeen  days  were  spent  in 
the  voyage,  which,  as  it  was  performed  in  light 
vessels,  may  be  considered  as  giving  less  than  the 
average  time  of  passing  over  this  distance  by  the 
existing  water  communications.  The  same  dis 
tance  was  performed  by  the  packet-boats  on  the 
canal  in  thirty-six  hours,  and  by  the  lighter  class 
of  freight-boats  it  is  passed  over  in  about  fifty 
hours.  The  latter  carry  with  ease  from  forty  to 
fifty  tons,  while  the  capacity  of  some  of  the  heavy 
boats,  even  before  the  enlargement  of  the  canal 
was  commenced,  reached  nearly  to  a  hundred  tons. 
This  voyage  has  been  dwelt  upon  at  some 
length,  because  it  affords  a  standard  of  compari 
son  whereby  the  great  advantages  derived  from 


172  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

the  Erie  Canal,  in  the  facility  and  cheapness  of 
transportation,  may  be  conveniently  illustrated. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  enter  into  the  detail  of  the 
remainder  of  the  journey.  Clinton,  with  his  par 
ty,  proceeded  to  the  Niagara  River,  which  they 
crossed  to  Newark  in  Canada,  visited  the  falls, 
and  returned  by  the  ridge  road,  then  newly  cut 
through  the  woods.  On  returning  to  Geneva,  a 
deviation  from  the  direct  route  was  made  to  Itha 
ca,  at  the  head  of  Lake  Cayuga,  whence  the  state 
road  was  joined  at  Auburn.  Finally,  on  the  19th 
August,  Schenectady  was  reached,  and,  after  a  de 
lay  of  a  day  in  Albany,  Clinton  returned  by  the 
steamboat  to  New- York. 

The  feasibility  of  a  canal  to  Lake  Erie,  in  a 
direct  course,  was  necessarily  a  subject  of  discuss 
ion  at  the  several  meetings  of  the  board  to  which 
we  have  alluded.  The  relative  advantages  of  the 
direct  route,  and  that  by  the  way  of  Lake  On 
tario,  were  also  canvassed.  Clinton  appears  to 
have  avoided  any  positive  expression  of  his 
views  until  the  meeting  at  Chippeway,  when  he 
had,  by  personal  information  and  examination  of 
the  surveys  of  Judge  Geddes,  satisfied  himself  that 
a  canal  of  the  ordinary  character  was  practica 
ble  from  the  Hudson  to  Lake  Erie.  The  practica 
bility  of  the  other  route  had  long  been  obvious. 
It  therefore  became  a  question  merely  of  policy, 
which  ought  to  be  adopted.  On  this  head  his 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  173 

decision  had  been  made  up  at  an  early  stage  of 
the  investigation.  He  saw,  upon  the  proposed  line 
from  Rome  to  Buffalo,  a  country  capable,  by  its 
fertility,  of  supporting  the  proposed  canal;  he 
weighed  the  difficulties  and  expense  attending 
transshipment  from  vessels  calculated  to  navigate 
the  lakes  to  canal-boats ;  and,  more  than  all,  he 
dreaded  that  the  trade  of  the  West  might  be  di 
verted  to  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  its  growing  pop 
ulation  compelled  to  form  connexions  in  business 
with  the  British  colonies. 

Morris,  of  more  sanguine  temperament,  had  come 
at  a  much  earlier  period  to  similar  conclusions,  and 
had  made  up  his  mind  that  all  material  obstacles 
must  give  way  to  the  Erie  route.  He  adopted  in 
its  full  extent,  and  without  waiting  for  the  result 
of  the  surveys,  the  brilliant  but  crude  conception 
of  Hawley.  This  plan  he  urged  with  all  his  elo 
quence  on  his  colleagues  at  their  meeting  in  Uti- 
ca.  The  occurrence  is  thus  stated  in  the  journal 
of  his  tour  kept  by  Clinton. 

"  At  this  meeting,  the  senior  commissioner  talk 
ed  wildly.  He  was  for  breaking  down  the  mound 
of  Lake  Erie,  and  letting  out  the  waters  to  follow 
the  level  of  the  country,  so  as  to  form  a  sloop 
navigation  with  the  Hudson,  and  without  any  aid 
from  any  other  water." 

However  correct,  then,  were  Morris's  views  of 
the  policy  of  the  direct  route  to  Lake  Erie,  it  is 


174  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

evident  that  he  had  formed  no  practical  idea  of  the 
mode  in  which  it  might  be  accomplished,  nor  did 
he  at  any  subsequent  period  reduce  his  soaring 
imagination  to  the  level  of  common  sense. 

To  the  policy  of  the  direct  route  to  Lake  Erie 
all  the  commissioners  save  one  assented,  and  at 
the  final  meeting  at  Chippeway  Clinton  was  com 
pelled  to  combat  on  the  one  hand  the  magnifi 
cent  but  impracticable  project  of  Morris,  and  on 
the  other  the  plausible  and  popular  plan  of  ad 
hering  as  closely  as  possible  to  the  natural  course 
of  the  waters.  The  expense  of  constructing  a  ca 
nal  from  Albany  to  Oswego,  and  another  around 
the  Falls  of  Niagara,  would  have  been  much  less 
than  that  of  a  direct  canal  to  Lake  Erie,  and 
would  therefore  have  been  more  certainly  within 
reach  of  the  resources  of  the  state;  and  had  the 
sole  object  of  the  navigation  been  that  of  forming 
a  communication  with  the  shores  of  the  upper 
lakes,  the  argument  would  have  been  unanswera 
ble. 

Had  this  opinion  prevailed,  the  consequences 
would  have  been  disastrous  to  the  State  of  New- 
York  ;  the  current  of  population  which  has  been 
borne  on  the  waters  of  the  canal  to  every  point 
within  its  reach,  and  which  has  made  the  region 
west  of  Rome  the  richest  agricultural  district  in 
the  Union,  would  have  flowed  onward  to  Lake 
Erie,  and  even  more  distant  regions,  to  which  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  175 

Ontario  route  would  have  given  a  more  ready  ac 
cess. 

On  the  other  hand,  had  the  scheme  of  Morris 
been  the  only  one  submitted  to  the  public,  its  ut 
ter  want  of  practicability  would  have  defeated  the 
chance  of  any  farther  action.  At  this  point,  then, 
do  the  paramount  services  of  Clinton  in  the  ca 
nal  policy  of  the  state  commence.  Up  to  this  mo 
ment  he  had  been  an  efficient  and  ardent  friend  of 
a  system  of  internal  improvement,  but  had  waited 
for  personal  inspection  to  satisfy  himself  of  its 
practicability  and  importance.  He  from  this  mo 
ment  took  the  lead  in  all  the  measures  which  were 
necessary  for  its  accomplishment. 

Clinton's  views  were  sanctioned  by  the  majority 
of  his  colleagues,  but  he  saw  the  importance  of  se 
curing  a  unanimous  report.  It  was  believed  by 
some  of  the  commissioners  that  Morris  had  been 
convinced  by  the  arguments  of  Clinton;  at  all 
events,  the  subject  had  been  fully  discussed  in  his 
presence.  By  courtesy,  Morris,  as  senior  commis 
sioner,  was  entitled  to  the  right  of  drawing  the 
report  of  the  board,  unless  a  difference  of  opinion 
had.  arisen  of  sufficient  moment  to  have  justified 
his  colleagues  in  intrusting  that  duty  to  another. 
Had  this  been  done,  three  adverse  reports  would 
in  all  probability  have  been  presented,  and  the 
popular  arguments  in  favour  of  the  Ontario  and 
Niagara  route  would  have  been  brought  forward. 


176  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

By  leaving  Morris  in  possession  of  his  prescriptive 
right,  this  danger  would  be  avoided ;  and  it  was 
believed  that  any  objection  which  might  be  raised 
to  Morris's  individual  views  would  be  obviated 
by  the  exhibition  of  the  surveys  and  practical  con 
clusions  of  Judge  Geddes. 

The  report  of  the  board  was,  in  consequence, 
drawn  by  Morris,  and  well  sustained  his  veteran 
reputation  for  ability  as  a  wrriter,  and  for  enlarged 
views  as  a  statesman.  It  established  the  practi 
cability  of  an  inland  canal,  and  illustrated  its  ad 
vantages  in  a  masterly  manner.  But  it  also  in 
cluded  the  idea  of  creating  an  artificial  river  from 
the  elevation  of  Lake  Erie  to  the  Hudson,  and  a 
digression  into  a  long  exposition  of  the  facilities 
and  advantages  of  an  inclined  plane  canal,  in 
which  rivers  and  lakes  were  to  be  passed  by 
aqueducts,  and  valleys  by  mounds.  This  plan, 
which,  in  the  hands  of  Hawley,  who  argued  from 
imperfect  knowledge  of  the  country,  and  from  a 
general  view  of  its  qualifications,  was  a  brilliant 
conception,  became  ridiculous  when  contrasted 
with  the  actual  levels.  From  these  it  appeared 
that,  besides  minor  obstacles,  the  wide  and  deep 
chasm  of  the  Cayuga  Lake  fell  so  far  below  the 
level  of  a  uniform  slope,  that  it  would  require  to 
be  passed  by  a  mound  and  aqueduct,  which,  if 
not  impossible  in  the  nature  of  things,  was  ren 
dered  so  by  the  enormous  expenditure  it  must 
have  occasioned. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  177 

On  the  meeting  of  the  commissioners  to  consider 
the  report,  these  objections  were  apparent.  Mo 
tives  of  delicacy,  and  the  personal  respect  they  all 
bore  to  Morris,  prevented  any  proposition  being 
made  for  striking  out  this  portion  of  it.  Some  of 
the  commissioners  were,  in  fact,  inclined  to  leave 
it  to  be  signed  by  Morris  as  senior  commissioner, 
and  thus  avoid  affixing  their  names  to  it.  Clin 
ton,  however,  urged  the  importance  of  the  appear 
ance  of  unanimity,  and  pointed  out  the  fact  that, 
while  Morris  had  not  refrained  from  expressing 
his  own  opinions,  he  had,  at  the  same  time,  avoid 
ed  committing  his  colleagues  as  sanctioning  them, 
and  had  fairly  declared  that  there  was  room  for 
difference  of  opinion.  He  had  also  referred  to  the 
surveys,  whence  the  true  state  of  the  case  might 
be  at  once  inferred  by  all  who  should  with  intel 
ligence  examine  the  subject. 

"  In  respect  to  the  inland  navigation,"  says  the 
report,  "  from  the  lakes  to  the  Hudson  River,  the 
commissioners  beg  leave  to  refer  for  information  to 
the  annexed  reports  and  maps  of  Mr.  James  Ged- 
des,  employed  at  their  request  by  the  surveyor- 
general.  From  these  it  is  evident  that  such  navi 
gation  is  practicable.  Whether  the  route  here 
sketched  out  will  hereafter  be  pursued,  whether  a 
better  way  may  not  be  found,  and  other  questions 
subordinate  to  these,  can  only  be  resolved  at  a  fu 
ture  time,  when  an  intelligent  man,  regularly  bred 


178  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

to  this  business,  shall,  under  the  direction  of  those 
on  whom  the  public  may  think  proper  to  devote 
this  superintendence,  have  made  a  more  exact  and 
careful  scrutiny  than  the  time  and  means  of  the 
commissioners  would  permit.'3 

As  a  farther  concession  to  the  opinions  of  his 
colleagues,  the  report  says,  "  Preliminary  points 
are  to  be  adjusted,  and  of  these  the  first  is, 
Whether  it  is  to  be  made  for  sloops  or  barges. 
The  expense  of  the  former  will,  it  is  believed,  be 
at  least  double  that  of  the  latter.  Another  ques 
tion,  Whether  it  shall  be  carried  along  an  inclined 
plane,  or  by  a  line  ascending  and  descending,  must 
be  directed  by  a  comparison  of  the  expense  and 
of  the  utility  each  way." 

If  Morris,  therefore,  had  taken  advantage  of  his 
position  as  canal  commissioner  to  place  his  indi 
vidual  opinions  in  a  prominent  light,  he  had  made 
no  unfair  use  of  his  seniority  in  suppressing  those 
of  his  colleagues.  They,  on  the  other  hand,  were 
justified  in  trusting  that  the  public  would  not  ac 
cept  or  reject  a  scheme  of  so  much  importance 
without  a  close  and  deliberate  examination ;  and 
Clinton  was  a  believer  in  the  final  triumph  of  good 
sense  in  all  questions  fairly  submitted  to  the  people. 

Clinton  was  justified  in  the  course  he  took  on 
this  occasion  by  the  result.  The  report  excited  a 
prodigious  sensation.  There  \vere  some  who  were 
qualified  to  judge,  and  who,  aware  of  the  prartica- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  179 

bility  of  a  canal  to  Lake  Erie  upon  ordinary  prin 
ciples,  regretted  that  the  project  of  the  inclined 
plane  had  ever  been  broached.  These  received 
the  report  with  a  feeling  of  disappointment.  It 
did  not  alter  their  well-founded  belief,  but  it  caus 
ed  them  to  fear  that  a  scheme  practicable  in  itself 
might  be  defeated  by  the  ridicule  which  they  saw 
must  be  cast  upon  the  stupendous  project  of  Mor 
ris.  Those  who  were  also  qualified  to  judge  of 
the  plan,  but  were  as  yet  unacquainted  with  the 
circumstances,  were  not  seduced  by  the  eloquence 
of  Morris  from  an  examination  of  the  documents 
appended  to  the  report ;  and,  on  mature  delibera 
tion,  became  satisfied  that  a  plan  of  less  imposing 
magnificence  was  feasible. 

At  that  time,  however,  the  state  numbered  but 
few  who  possessed  the  knowledge  which  would 
have  enabled  them  to  examine  such  a  question 
with  intelligence.  The  multitude  was  therefore 
divided  into  two  great  parties ;  the  one  was  car 
ried  away  by  the  eloquence  of  Morris,  and  saw  in 
the  splendour  of  the  enterprise  he  proposed,  not 
only  a  source  of  wealth  to  the  state,  but  of  hon 
our  in  the  execution  of  a  work  more  grand  in  con 
ception  than  Babylonian  majesty  had  dreamed  of, 
or  Roman  energy  had  accomplished  ;  the  other 
revolted  at  the  scheme,  as  one  far  in  advance  of 
the  time,  and  likely  to  be  ruinous  by  loading  the 
state  with  an  inextinguishable  debt  The  report 


180  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

thus  afforded  ample  room  for  discussion ;  and  when, 
by  an  exhibition  of  a  plan  founded  on  sound  prin 
ciples,  all  the  objections  which  had  been  raised 
against  that  of  Morris  had  been  obviated,  it  was 
too  late  to  have  recourse  to  new  arguments  against 
it ;  and  many  of  those  who  on  the  first  view  had 
opposed  the  canal,  became  converts  to  its  practica 
bility  and  utility  when  they  saw  that  the  arguments 
which  had  been  used  against  it  had  ceased  to  be 
applicable. 

This  first  report,  then,  had  the  merit,  from  its 
very  extravagance,  of  exciting  the  public  atten 
tion  in  a  degree  far  greater  than  could  a  paper 
containing  no  more  than  an  accurate  exposition  of 
the  facts  ascertained  by  the  commissioners,  and  the 
proposal  of  a  plan  founded  on  the  experience  of 
other  countries.  Morris  therefore  rendered  an  es 
sential  service  to  the  cause  of  internal  improve 
ments,  not  merely  by  his  honest  but  mistaken  zeal 
in  its  behalf,  but  by  provoking  discussions  which 
a  man  of  less  genius  but  of  more  practical  talent 
would  have  avoided. 

The  report  was  presented  to  the  Legislature  in 
due  course ;  and  on  its  reception,  Clinton,  who 
now  prepared  to  take  the  lead  in  all  measures  cal 
culated  to  further  this  great  scheme  of  internal  im 
provement,  brought  a  bill  into  the  Senate  for  the 
purpose  of  continuing  the  investigations,  and  pre 
paring  for  the  execution  of  the  project.  By  this 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  181 

bill,  which  became  a  law,  the  same  commissioners 
were  continued,  and  the  members  of  the  board  in 
creased  by  the  addition  of  Robert  Fulton  and 
Robert  L.  Livingston.  Fifteen  thousand  dollars 
were  appropriated  for  farther  surveys;  and  the 
commissioners  were  authorized  to  apply  to  the 
general  government,  or  to  those  of  any  of  the  in 
dividual  states,  for  assistance  in  the  accomplish 
ment  of  the  canal. 

In  compliance  with  this  law,  full  and  complete 
surveys  were  made  under  the  direction  of  the  com 
missioners,  and  a  report  was  made  in  1812  to  the 
Legislature ;  in  this  the  inclined  plane  was  formal 
ly  abandoned,  and  a  plan  presented  identical  in 
its  great  features  with  that  which  was  actually  ex 
ecuted.  The  intervention  of  the  war  at  this  epoch 
put  an  end  to  all  active  proceedings,  and  the  ac 
tion  of  the  Legislature  on  this  report  will  fall 
with  more  propriety  into  a  subsequent  portion  of 
this  memoir. 

•••'VjLt 


182  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

Origin  and  Growth  of  the  Democratic  Party.- 
Its  Triumph  in  the  Election  of  Jefferson. — 
George  Clinton  chosen  Vice-president  in  the 
place  of  Burr. — His  Pretensions  to  be  the  Suc 
cessor  of  Jefferson. — He  is  Passed  over. — Jeal 
ousy  of  Virginia. — Jill  Aid  to  the  New-York 
Canals  is  refused. — Dewitt  Clinton  is  named 
as  a  Candidate  for  the  Presidency. — Examina 
tion  of  his  Course  in  relation  to  the  War. 

THE  party  which  assumed  to  itself  the  exclusive 
title  of  democratic  was  made  up  of  many  hetero 
geneous  materials.  It  had  been  organized,  in  the 
first  instance,  as  an  opposition  to  the  administration 
of  Washington,  on  the  questions  of  the  proclama 
tion  of  neutrality  and  the  ratification  of  Jay's 
treaty.  This  opposition  was  gladly  joined  by  the 
remnant  of  the  anti-federalists,  and  by  many  of 
the  more  warm  federalists,  who  had  been  disap 
pointed  in  obtaining  office  under  the  new  govern 
ment.  The  cabinet  of  Washington  had  been  it 
self  divided  on  these  questions,  and  thus  the  secre 
tary  of  state  became  the  most  prominent  man  of 
the  new  party.  Even  among  the  anti-federalists 
the  shades  of  opinion  were  various  in  the  extreme, 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  183 

from  those  who  would  have  been  content  with  a 
federation  possessing  even  less  than  the  limited 
powers  to  which  the  old  Congress  had  restricted  it 
self,  to  those  who  desired  a  strong  and  firm  central 
government,  but  preferred  that  its  popular  branches 
should  possess  a  greater  degree  of  authority,  and 
the  power  of  the  executive  be  more  limited  than 
had  been  done  by  the  Constitution.     The  two  most 
opposite  opinions  were  thus  united  in  opposition  on 
a  single  point,  that  which  held  the  exclusive  au 
thority  of  the  state  sovereignties,  and  that  which 
was  for  deriving  all  power  without  intervention 
from  the  people.     The  party  therefore  strengthen 
ed  itself  to  the  South  among  the  rich  and  power 
ful  planters,  who  possessed  a  local  influence  which 
the  action  of  the  general  government  diminished ; 
wThile  it  numbered  to  the  North  the  hardy  yeoman 
ry,  who  retained  the  revolutionary  feeling  which 
had  led  to  the  breaking  up  of  entails  and  the  ab 
rogation  of  manorial  privileges.     Propagating  in 
the  latter  case  the  doctrine  of  the  largest  liberty, 
the  party  was  joined  by  all  the  foreigners  who 
had  fled  from  the  oppression  of  their  native  gov 
ernments.      The  natives  of  England   and   Scot 
land,  on  the  other  hand,  who  sought  to  become 
citizens  of  the  United  States  for  the  purposes  of 
commerce,  were  ranged  in  the  federal  party. 

The  question  of  a  national  bank  produced  a 
new  point  of  difference  between  those  who  admit- 

P 


184  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

ted  that  the  Constitution  gave  every  power  inci 
dent  or  collateral  to  those  actually  granted  in 
terms,  and  those  who  adhered  to  the  mere  letter  of 
the  instrument. 

So  long  as  Washington  retained  the  office  of 
president,  his  transcendent  greatness  of  character, 
and  the  strong  hold  he  held  on  the  affections  of 
his  countrymen,  prevented  the  rising  party  from 
taking  the  form  of  a  steady  and  uniform  opposi 
tion.  He  had  himself  the  faculty  of  training  to 
his  service  talent  of  every  variety,  and  making  the 
most  discordant  opinions  work  together  for  the 
promotion  of  the  general  welfare.  Jefferson  and 
Hamilton,  the  imbodied  personifications  of  the 
two  most  opposite  opinions,  were  both  retained  in 
his  cabinet,  and  were  both  efficient  in  bringing  to 
a  successful  result  the  difficult  experiment  of  a 
form  of  government  without  example,  as  it  has 
hitherto  been  without  parallel. 

The  determination  of  Washington  to  retire  from 
a  station  that  he  might  have  held  so  long  as  it 
pleased  him,  was  the  signal  for  the  organization 
of  the  two  opposing  parties.  Adams,  the  Vice- 
President,  became  the  candidate  of  the  one,  and 
Jefferson  of  the  other.  A  new  element  of  divis 
ion  was  thus  introduced,  for  sectional  feelings 
•were  enlisted  in  the  disputes,  and  attempts  were 
mutually  made  to  array  the  North  against  the 
South.  Adams  was  elected  in  preference  to  his 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  185 

competitor;  and,  had  he  possessed  either  popular 
arts  or  clear-sighted  views,  might  have  secured 
the  constant  triumph  of  the  party  which  had  sup 
ported  him.  In  the  former,  however,  he  was  de 
ficient,  and  his  want  of  popularity  was  aggravated 
by  two  injudicious  acts,  by  which  the  liberty  of 
the  press  was  menaced,  and  the  right  of  personal 
liberty  invaded.  The  alien  and  sedition  laws,  of 
which  he  was,  in  popular  opinion,  the  instigator, 
furnished  his  opponents  with  a  well-founded  means 
of  attack.  He  still  had  one  chance  of  retaining 
his  power.  The  aggressions  of  Great  Britain  on 
our  commerce  had  been  almost  put  an  end  to 
by  the  operations  of  Jay's  treaty,  while  those  of 
France  were  not  only  continued,  but  were  aggra 
vated  by  a  feeling  growing  out  of  that  very  trea 
ty.  Hence  a  good  and  just  cause  of  war  against 
that  nation  arose,  and  hostilities  were  actually 
commenced  by  a  law  authorizing  the  capture  and 
detention  of  French  cruisers  and  privateers.  To 
carry  on  these  hostilities  a  navy  was  created,  and, 
for  less  obvious  reasons,  an  army  was  imbodied. 

A  universal  burst  of  popular  feeling  hailed  the 
war  with  France,  and  the  leaders  of  the  opposition 
were  thus  left  without  the  means  of  attacking  the 
administration  with  success.  The  strong  feeling  of 
national  pride  was  about  to  be  awakened,  and  this, 
as  in  1813,  would  probably  have  swept  awav 
every  landmark  of  party. 


186  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY, 

It  appears  probable  that  the  great  preparations 
of  the  administration  of  Adams  had  other  views 
than  mere  defensive  operations.  The  strengthen 
ing  of  the  navy  was  well  calculated  to  place  the 
United  States  in  an  imposing  attitude  in  respect  to 
Great  Britain,  as  well  as  to  clear  the  seas  of  the 
picaroons  bearing  the  French  flag.  But  the  well- 
organized  and  admirably-equipped  army,  of  which 
Hamilton  was  in  the  actual,  although  Washington 
held  the  nominal  command,  was  not  called  for  by 
any  fear  of  invasion  from  France,  and  the  course 
of  events  appeared  to  be  throwing  the  United 
States  into  an  alliance  with  Great  Britain. 

It  may  therefore  appear  far  from  improbable 
that  a  great  scheme  of  conquest  and  national  ag 
grandizement  had  been  planned  in  the  secret  coun 
cils  of  the  federal  party.  Cuba  wras  the  recepta 
cle  of  the  bucaneers  who  preyed  upon  the  neutral 
commerce  of  America,  and,  from  the  alliance  of 
Spain  with  France,  must  have  become  the  centre 
of  any  hostile  action  on  the  part  of  the  former. 
It  was,  of  course,  obvious  that,  when  the  hostilities 
against  France  should  become  a  formal  war,  Spain 
would  in  fact,  if  not  by  absolute  declaration,  be 
come  a  party  to  it.  It  is  therefore  not  an  unlikely 
surmise  that  the  army  of  1798  was  intended  to 
act  against  the  Spanish  colonies  of  Louisiana  and 
Florida,  nay,  perhaps  with  the  aid  and  concurrence 
of  Great  Britain,  against  Cuba,  or  Mexico  itself 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  187 

The  obvious  tendency  of  the  acts  of  the  admin 
istration  of  Adams,  whether  so  intended  or  not,  to 
unng  the  United  States  into  the  coalition  against 
revolutionary  France,  furnished  the  opposition  with 
a  bond  of  union.  By  this  it  was  kept  together,  in 
spite  of  the  heterogeneous  character  of  the  materi 
als  of  which  we  have  seen  it  to  be  originally  made; 
and  the  habit  of  acting  in  concert  under  a  steady 
discipline,  either  fused  all  the  various  opinions  into 
one  common  mass,  or  silenced  the  expression  of 
,such  as  were  not  avowed  by  the  papers  which  be 
came  the  organs  oi  the  party.  In  the  faith  thus 
publicly  expressed  the  younger  portion  of  the 
community  was  educated;  and  what  may  have  at 
first  been  no  more  than  an  assumption  of  principles 
calculated  for  political  effect,  became  the  sincere 
belief  of  at  least  half  of  the  youth  of  the  United 
States. 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  intentions  of  the 
party  with  which  he  acted,  Adams  did  not  carry 
out  even  the  first  steps  of  the  plan.  Instead  of 
exciting  the  hostile  feeling  against  France  to  the 
height  of  a  war  in  all  its  forms,  he  sought  and  ef 
fected  a  reconciliation  with  that  country.  By  this 
the  numerous  active  spirits  who  had  sought  occu 
pation  in  arms,  or  had  enrolled  themselves  as  vol 
unteers,  were  disgusted,  and  many  of  them  were 
speedily  classed  in  the  ranks  of  his  opponents. 
His  own  party  was  distracted,  and  yielded  him 


188  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

only  a  feeble  support,  or  sought  to  abandon  him 
for  some  more  acceptable  candidate.  In  the 
mean  time,  his  administration  did  not  adapt  its 
measures  to  the  new  state  of  things;  the  army 
was  not  disbanded ;  measures  for  the  increase  of 
the  navy  were  persisted  in ;  and  the  taxes  impo 
sed  in  view  of  a  war  were  not  taken  off.  His 
adroit  adversaries  seized  these  points  of  his  policy 
as  open  to  attack,  and  in  the  outcry  raised  against 
a  naval  force,  a  standing  army,  and  taxes  in  time 
of  peace,  found  the  most  efficient  weapons  for 
overthrowing  his  power. 

In  this  they  were  so  successful  that  they  ven 
tured  on  running  two  candidates  for  the  presiden 
cy,  in  order  to  secure  both  that  office  and  the  place 
of  vice-president  to  members  of  their  party.  This 
was  rendered  necessary  by  an  existing  provision 
of  the  Constitution,  wrhich  has  since  been  repealed, 
by  which  the  office  of  vice-president  fell  to  the 
candidate  for  the  presidency  who  should  receive 
the  second  number  of  votes. 

The  result  of  this  bold  measure  in  the  election 
of  Jefferson  as  President,  and  Burr  as  Vice-Presi 
dent,  and  the  suspicion  of  an  attempted  collusion 
with  their  federal  opponents,  to  which  the  latter 
was  exposed,  are  familiar  facts. 

In  this  struggle  and  final  triumph  the  elder 
Clinton  bore  an  important  part,  and  Dewitt  Clin 
ton  figured  towards  its  close  as  an  efficient  agent 


DEWITT     CLINTON  189 

They  had,  as  we  have  seen,  been  among  the  mod 
erate  opponents  to  the  federal  constitution,  on  the 
ground  of  state  rights ;  and  although  George  Clin 
ton  had  finally  acquiesced  in  the  vote  of  the  state 
convention,  he  had  been  immediately  assailed  by 
an  opposition  to  his  re-election  as  governor.  Thus 
driven  into  opposition,  he  had  become  the  decided 
supporter  of  Jefferson,  and  had  aided  most  power 
fully  in  securing  him  the  vote  of  New-York.  In 
the  intrigues  by  which  Burr  was  so  near  taking 
the  first  instead  of  the  second  rank,  the  friends  of 
the  Clintons  were  the  undeviating  supporters  of 
Jefferson. 

We  have  seen  the  prominent  part  which  Dewitt 
Clinton  took  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  in 
support  of  the  administration  of  Jefferson.  His 
seat  in  that  body  was  held  for  a  short  time,  and 
with  this  short  exception,  he,  with  his  uncle, 
whose  re-election  as  governor  accompanied  the 
triumph  of  the  democratic  party,  were  fully  occu 
pied  by  their  executive  duties  and  the  party  strug 
gles  of  their  own  state.  On  the  re-election  of 
Jefferson,  George  Clinton  became  vice-president, 
and  a  wider  field  of  politics  was  opened.  From 
former  usage,  he  felt  himself  entitled  to  be  consid 
ered  as  the  person  to  be  selected  as  the  candi 
date  of  his  party  for  the  office  of  president.  On 
the  other  hand,  Virginia  was  unwilling  to  part 
with  the  prescriptive  claim  to  that  office,  and  the 


190  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

secretary  of  state  seemed  to  be  preferred  by  the 
incumbent  of  the  office ;  mutual  jealousies  arose, 
and  the  general  administration  manifested  neutral 
ity  in  the  schisms  of  the  party  in  New-York,  if  not 
actual  preference  for  those  who  had  been  denoun 
ced  by  it. 

With  a  just  sense  of  duty  to  the  country  at  large, 
and  his  native  state  in  particular,  George  Clin 
ton  urged  measures  of  preparation  for  defence,  and 
particularly  the  fortification  of  the  harbour  of  New- 
York.  He  also  appears  never  to  have  been  in  fa 
vour  of  the  entire  disbandment  of  the  army,  or  the 
neglect  of  the  navy.  The  embargo  received  his 
warm  support,  not  as  a  measure  intended  as  a  sub 
stitute  for  a  war  with  England,  but  as  one  of  di 
rect  preparation;  and  we  have  on  it  on  record  that 
he  urged  upon  the  president,  after  the  adoption  of 
that  measure,  the  equipment  and  manning  of  all 
the  vessels  remaining  in  the  navy.  For  this  meas 
ure  he  urged  the  motives  of  assuming  an  imposing 
attitude  in  aid  of  negotiation,  of  being  prepared  in 
the  event  of  a  war,  and  of  alleviating  the  distress 
of  the  class  of  citizens  on  whom  the  pressure  of 
the  embargo  fell  most  severely. 

In  these  views  Dewitt  Clinton  concurred  most 
cordially  with  his  uncle;  and  we  have  seen  that 
when  the  defence  of  the  harbour  of  New- York 
was  neglected  by  the  government,  he  was  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  191 

principal  instrument  in  obtaining  appropriations 
from  the  state  for  the  purpose. 

When  the  distress  produced  by  the  embargo 
became  so  serious  as  to  threaten  a  loss  of  the  ma 
jorities  which  the  democratic  party  had  hitherto 
commanded,  Dewitt  Clinton  presided  at  a  meeting 
in  the  Park,  which  pledged  itself  to  the  support  of 
the  administration  on  that  measure,  which  nothing 
but  the  belief  of  its  being  a  preparation  for  war 
could  have  rendered  tolerable. 

To  the  feeble  and  inefficient  measures  of  non 
importation  and  non-intercourse  which  succeeded 
the  embargo,  Clinton  was  decidedly  opposed.  He 
viewed  them  as  imposing  all  the  privations  of  a 
war  without  any  of  its  advantages,  and  urged  the 
adoption  of  a  more  energetic  course. 

When  Jefferson,  in  pursuance  of  the  example  of 
self-denial  set  by  Washington,  retired  from  the 
presidential  chair,  the  claims  of  George  Clinton  to 
the  succession  were  passed  over.  His  advanced 
age  was  a  sufficient  reason  for  this;  but  there  wrere 
not  a  few  of  the  democratic  party  who  would  even 
then  have  desired  that  Dewitt  Clinton  should  have 
been  the  candidate.  At  the  caucus  of  members 
of  Congress  by  whom  Madison  was  nominated  as 
the  successor  of  Jefferson,  ninety-four  were  pres 
ent.  Of  these  only  one  was  from  Ne\v-York, 
and  the  attendance  from  Virginia  wras  not  full. 
The  members  from  New-York  who  did  not  attend 


192  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

were  understood  to  prefer  George  Clinton,  and  the 
absentees  from  Virginia  to  be  in  favour  of  Mon 
roe.  In  the  decision  of  this  caucus  Clinton  and 
his  friends  acquiesced  in  silence  ;  but  the  jealousy 
of  the  growing  power  of  New-York,  and  particu 
larly  of  the  rising  talents  and  influence  of  Dewitt 
Clinton,  were  powerfully  excited  in  the  breasts  of 
those  who  desired  to  perpetuate  the  ascendancy  of 
Virginia. 

This  state  of  mind  in  the  immediate  personal 
adherents  of  the  president  became  apparent  to 
Dewitt  Clinton  when  he,  in  pursuance  of  the  act 
of  the  Legislature  of  1811,  visited  Washington  for 
the  purpose  of  soliciting  aid  for  the  prosecution  of 
the  New- York  canals.  The  doctrine  that  it  was 
not  within  the  delegated  powers  of  the  general 
government  to  grant  such  aid  had  not  then  been 
invented;  the  neglect  of  all  measures  preparatory 
to  a  war,  or  necessary  for  defence,  had  left  the  gov 
ernment  in  possession  of  ample  funds,  and  thus,  to 
all  appearance,  there  was  nothing  but  sectional 
jealousy  which  could  prevent  such  aid  being  fur 
nished. 

During  the  succeeding  session  of  Congress,  ac 
tive  measures  were  taken  for  creating  an  army  and 
making  provision  for  defence,  or  even  for  acting 
hostilely  against  Great  Britain.  In  these  prepara 
tory  measures  Clinton  concurred,  and  they  were 
supported  in  Congress  by  the  votes  of  his  imme- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  193 

diate  friends  and  the  exertion  of  all  his  influence. 
When,  however,  in  June,  18 12,  the  final  question 
of  war  or  peace  at  that  precise  moment  was  enter 
tained,  he  appears  to  have  been  of  the  opinion 
that,  however  just  and  necessary  a  war  with  Great 
Britain  were,  the  juncture  was  unfavourable,  and 
the  country  was  not  in  a  sufficient  state  of  prepar 
ation.  In  these  views  he  was  countenanced  by  a 
great  number  of  the  most  uniform  and  consistent 
members  of  the  party;  a  number  so  great,  that, 
when  added  to  the  opposition  members,  it  was  be 
lieved,  by  the  most  adroit  politicians,  that  a  dec 
laration  of  war  could  hardly  be  carried  in  the 
House  of  Representatives,  and  must  certainly  fail 
in  the  Senate.  The  course  of  political  manage 
ment  by  which  an  apparent  minority  was  sudden 
ly  and  unexpectedly  converted  into  a  majority,  is 
still  unexplained.  With  this  majority  the  immedi 
ate  friends  of  Clinton  voted ;  thus  showing,  what 
ever  hesitation  he  may  have  felt  in  respect  to  the 
policy  of  making  war  at  the  moment,  a  hesitation 
which  many  believe  was  shared  by  the  president 
himself,  that,  when  it  was  decided  upon  as  the 
measure  of  the  party,  he  was  willing  to  give  it  his 
support. 

The  nomination  by  a  caucus  of  members  of 
Congress  had  become  odious  to  many.  Hence, 
when  Madison's  first  term  was  about  to  expire,  no 
more  than  twelve  persons  from  states  east  of  New- 


194  AMERICAN   BIOGRAPHY. 

Jersey  attended  the  meeting.  From  this  caucus 
Madison  received  a  nomination  for  a  second  term. 
Those  republicans  who  objected  to  the  usage  of  a 
caucus,  and  refused  to  obey  its  commands,  fixed 
their  eyes  upon  Clinton  as  an  opponent  to  the 
nominee  of  this  meeting.  Clinton  was,  in  conse 
quence,  put  in  nomination  ;  and,  when  the  electo 
ral  votes  were  counted,  was  found  to  have  received 
89,  while  Madison  was  elected  by  128  votes. 

In  permitting  himself  to  be  used  as  a  candidate, 
Clinton  'exposed  himself  to  great  obloquy.  Two 
different  parties  were  interested  in  misrepresenting 
his  views  and  opinions.  The  supporters  of  Madi 
son,  on  the  one  hand,  were  anxious  that  Clinton 
should  be  represented  as  an  opponent  of  the  war, 
believing  that  they  would  thus  lessen  his  populari 
ty  and  diminish  the  vote  for  him  as  president. 
The  federal  party,  on  the  other  hand,  were  willing 
to  consider  him  as  opposed  to  the  war,  as  by  this 
they  might  consistently  vote  for  him,  and  obtain 
an  opportunity  for  distracting  the  ranks  of  their 
ancient  opponents.  He  was  even  strongly  urged 
to  declare  himself  upon  this  point;  and,  had  he 
given  the  least  encouragement  to  a  report  that  he 
was  the  opponent  of  the  war,  he  might  have  secu 
red  the  almost  undivided  support  of  the  federal  par 
ty.  This  would  probably  have  secured  his  election, 
for  that  party  was  still  strong  and  well  organized 
Into  the  latter  plan  Clinton  declined  to  enter ;  and 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  195 

thus,  if  he  may  have  received  the  vote  of  a  few 
rederalists,  he  derived  no  aid  from  them  as  a  party, 
except  in  the  Eastern  states,  where  he  was  chosen 
as  the  least  of  two  evils.  His  decision  on  this 
point  left  a  feeling  of  animosity  in  the  minds  of 
many  distinguished  opponents  of  the  administra 
tion,  which  arrayed  them  ever  after  with  what 
ever  party  sought  the  downfall  of  Clinton. 

The  nomination  of  Clinton  was  made  by  a  con 
vention  of  the  republican  party  of  the  State  of 
New- York.  Many  persons  who  were  afterward 
his  most  bitter  opponents  concurred  in  the  call,  and 
gave  their  support  to  his  nomination.  The  electo 
ral  ticket  which  voted  for  him  was  headed  by  the 
gentleman  who  was  subsequently  the  successful 
candidate  of  the  party  which  opposed  Clinton's 
administration  as  governor. 

This  was  the  first  attempt  to  put  down  the  cau 
cus  system,  which  has  been  followed  by  the  very 
method  of  conventions  that  was  adopted  by  the 
friends  of  Clinton  ;  and  although  he  for  a  time 
became  the  sacrifice  of  the  new  principle,  it  has, 
notwithstanding,  been  triumphant,  and  is  now  uni 
versally  admitted  to  be  pre-eminently  republican. 

The  main  cause  assigned  by  the  convention  for 
putting  Clinton  in  nomination  for  the  presidency 
was,  that  hostilities  might  be  conducted  in  a  more 
efficient  manner.  The  early  operations  of  the  war 

ere  attended  with  discomfiture  and  disgrace  ;  and 


196  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

it  was  most  earnestly  desired,  by  many  sincere  well- 
wishers  of  their  country,  that  a  man  of  Clinton's 
decision,  capacity,  and  judgment  should  take  the 
place  of  what  they  considered  a  feeble  and  vacil 
lating  administration.  The  truth  is,  however  un 
popular  may  be  the  declaration  of  it,  that  a  war, 
commenced  without  preparation,  was  carried  on 
without  a  plan ;  and  the  force  which,  if  united, 
might  have  penetrated  to  the  walls  of  Quebec,  was 
engaged  in  partial  and  inconclusive  conflicts  over 
a  thousand  miles  of  frontier. 

So  far  from  attempting  to  embarrass  the  govern 
ment  in  the  prosecution  of  the  war,  Clinton  was 
the  first  official  personage  who  came  out  publicly 
to  arouse  his  countrymen  to  that  strenuous  and 
unanimous  support  of  the  cause  of  their  country 
by  which  alone  the  war  could  be  brought  to  a 
happy  issue.  An  opportunity  was  afforded  him 
for  this  purpose  in  his  charge  to  the  grand  jury  of 
the  City  and  County  of  New- York,  before  a  month 
had  elapsed  from  the  date  of  the  declaration  of 
war.  In  this  charge,  after  pointing  out  the  new 
relations  in  which  the  country  had  been  placed,  he 
explains  to  the  grand  jury  its  duty  in  inquiring 
into  such  acts  as  by  these  new  relations  had  be 
come  crimes. 

It  is  therefore  clear,  that  the  charge  of  being 
opposed  to  a  war  with  Great  Britain,  which  has 
been  so  often  urged  against  him,  is  devoid  of 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  197 

foundation.  Even  had  he  been  one  of  its  most 
strenuous  opponents  at  the  beginning,  he  would 
have  stood  in  no  worse  light  than  others,  who,  how 
ever  violent  they  had  been  in  their  resistance  to  a 
declaration  of  war,  were,  notwithstanding,  relieved 
from  all  imputations  of  want  of  patriotism,  in  con 
sequence  of  the  support  which  they  afforded  to  the 
government  in  carrying  it  on. 


198  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Progress  of  the  Canal  Policy  interrupted  by  the 
War. — Clinton  tenders  his  Military  Services  to 
Governor  Tompkins. — His  Report  on  the  De 
fence  of  the  City  of  New-Yor/c. — '-Measures  of 
the  Corporation,  and  of  the  State  and  General 
Governments,  in  consequence. — Clinton  is  re 
moved  from  his  Office  of  Mayor. — He  renews 
the  Consideration  of  the  Canal  Question.  — 
Meeting  on  that  Subject  in  New-York. — Clin 
ton  draws  the  Memorial  of  that  Meeting. — Ex 
amination  of  the  Contents,  and  Effects  of  that 
Memorial. 

THE  declaration  of  war  put  an  end  to  all  imme 
diate  chance  of  proceeding  with  the  construction 
of  the  New-York  canals.  The  Legislature  had 
indeed,  on  the  19th  of  June,  1812,  almost  at  the 
instant  that  the  war  began,  passed  an  act  further 
to  provide  for  the  improvement  of  the  internal 
navigation  of  this  state.  By  this  act  the  board  of 
commissioners  were  authorized  to  purchase  the  in 
terest  of  the  Western  Inland  Lock  Navigation 
Company,  and  to  borrow  five  millions  of  dollars 
as  a  fund  for  making  the  canal.  This  act  was 
obtained  by  the  exertion  on  the  part  of  Clinton 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  199 

of  the  same  powerful  influence  he  had  hitherto 
brought  to  bear  in  support  of  this  great  scheme. 
His  whole  soul  had  indeed  become  devoted  to  the 
object.  It  was,  therefore,  with  no  little  regret 
that  he  saw  any  chance  of  its  even  being  com 
menced  postponed  indefinitely  by  the  hostilities 
with  Great  Britain;  and  the  strenuous  support 
which  he  afforded  the  government  in  all  defensive 
measures,  derives  enhanced  merit  from  this  circum 
stance. 

He  had,  in  fact,  when  he  visited  Washington  to 
solicit  the  aid  of  the  general  government  to  the  ca 
nal,  pledged  his  support  and  that  of  his  friends  to 
the  government  in  case  of  a  war  with  Great  Brit 
ain  ;  and  this  pledge  he  redeemed.  On  his  return 
he  sought  to  regain  his  relative  rank  in  the  militia, 
with  a  view  of  being  in  the  way  of  active  service. 
His  own  view  of  his  claims  was  limited  to  the 
rank  of  brigadier;  but  the  council  of  appointment, 
in  consideration  of  his  eminent  standing  in  civil 
life,  conferred  on  him  the  commission  of  major-gen 
eral.  As  soon  as  it  became  necessary  to  call  out 
the  militia,  he  applied,  through  the  intervention  of 
Emmett,  to  Governor  Tompkins  for  a  command. 
He  was  compelled  to  make  use  of  the  channel  of 
a  mutual  friend,  as  any  familiar  intercourse  had 
ceased  between  him  and  the  governor.  Tompkins 
had  been  drawn  from  obscurity  by  the  notice  of 
Clinton,  and  owed  to  him  his  appointment  as  a 

Q 


200  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

judge,  and  his  nomination  as  a  candidate  for  gov 
ernor  in  opposition  to  General  Lewis.  He  was 
now  opposed  to  Clinton  on  the  presidential  ques 
tion,  and  gave  the  whole  weight  of  his  official  in 
fluence  to  Madison.  Clinton,  therefore,  could  not 
avoid  considering  him  as  ungrateful.  On  the  oth 
er  hand,  Tompkins  affected  to  consider  Clinton  as 
an  opponent  of  the  war.  It  therefore  did  not  suit 
him  to  bring  Clinton  forward  in  any  active  milita 
ry  employment,  and  the  application  for  a  command 
was  rejected. 

Clinton,  however,  was  determined  to  be  useful 
to  his  country  in  the  capacity  which  he  was  still 
permitted  to  retain,  that  of  mayor  of  the  City  of 
New-York.  Feeling  most  sensibly  the  exposed 
position  of  this  important  place,  he  drew  up  and 
presented  to  the  corporation  a  report  on  the  meas 
ures  necessary  for  its  defence,  and  strong  represen 
tations  were  in  consequence  made  to  the  govern 
ment. 

It  appeared  by  this  report  that,  so  culpable  had 
been  the  inattention  of  the  administration,  while 
that  of  England  was  sending  out  the  army  of  Spain 
and  Portugal  to  our  coast,  no  more  than  1600  men 
had  been  left  for  the  defence  of  New- York.  No 
other  mode  of  attack  had  been  anticipated  than 
from  shipping  attempting  to  enter  the  Narrows. 
The  state  had  made  provision  for  fortifying  the 
pass  at  Hellgate ;  but  no  preparation  of  any  de- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  201 

scription  had  been  made  in  case  an  army  were  to 
be  landed  on  Long  Island  or  in  West  Chester. 

The  report,  after  pointing  out  the  exposed  po 
sition  of  the  city,  proposed  that  fortified  camps 
should  be  established  at  Brooklyn  and  Haerlem, 
and  a  sufficient  body  of  militia  called  out  to  gar 
rison  them. 

To  attain  these  purposes,  eight  resolutions  were 
appended  to  the  report.  By  the  first,  a  committee 
of  the  Common  Council  was  directed  to  solicit  the 
attention  of  the  president  to  these  objects ;  by  the 
second,  the  governor  of  the  state  was  requested, 
under  the  authority  of  the  militia  law,  to  call  out 
a  sufficient  number  of  the  militia  to  occupy  the 
proposed  camps,  and  a  loan  of  $300,000  tendered 
him  for  the  purpose.  The  other  resolutions  had 
reference  to  munitions  of  war,  and  to  the  mode  of 
raising  the  money  tendered. 

The  corporation  at  the  time  contained  a  major 
ity  of  the  opponents  of  the  government,  and  polit 
ical  antagonists  of  Clinton.  On  this  occasion,  how 
ever,  all  party  feeling  was  forgotten,  and  absolute 
unanimity  prevailed  in  its  deliberations.  The  oc 
casion  was  seized  by  the  politic  Tompkins  as  a 
mode  of  increasing  his  popularity.  Up  to  this 
time  he  had  been  busily  engaged  in  pressing  of 
fensive  measures  on  the  frontiers  of  Canada,  with 
out  being  aware  that  the  enemy  saw  that  the 
surest  mode  of  defending  their  colony  was  by  ag- 


202  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

gressive  acts  on  the  coast  of  the  United  States. 
He  now  did  more  than  was  asked  of  him,  and 
poured  into  the  City  of  New-York  militia  contin 
gents  to  double  the  number  that  the  committee 
of  the  corporation  had  thought  necessary.  Of 
this  force  he  assumed  the  command,  obtaining 
from  the  general  government  its  sanction.  Clin 
ton,  in  the  mean  time — the  real  projector  of  the 
measure,  by  which  all  risk  of  attack  was  avoided, 
and  which  preserved  the  city  from  the  fate  of 
Washington  and  Alexandria,  or  the  panic  experi 
enced  at  Baltimore — was  studiously  kept  in  the 
background.  The  funds  necessary  for  the  pay 
and  support  of  this  imposing  force  far  exceeded 
the  amount  furnished  by  the  corporation.  A  se 
vere  trial  of  its  patriotism  was  therefore  to  be 
made.  The  general  government,  which  had  sanc 
tioned  the  call  of  such  a  force,  had  provided  no 
means  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  it  together.  Its 
credit,  from  mismanagement  of  its  vast  resources, 
had  fallen  to  so  low  an  ebb,  that  its  treasury  notes 
were  almost  worthless  in  the  market.  To  call  the 
state  legislature  together  would  have  been  a  tedious 
process,  during  which  the  troops  would  have  been 
exposed  to  distress,  or  must  have  been  disbanded. 
An  opportunity  was  thus  presented  by  which  an 
adroit  politician,  without  the  semblance  of  improp 
er  motives,  might  have  left  the  governor  to  his  own 
resources,  and  thrown  upon  him  the  responsibility 


D  E  W  IT  T     CLINTON.  203 

of  collecting,  for  his  own  purposes,  a  force  he  was 
unable  to  pay  or  feed.  Such,  however,  was  not 
the  course  of  the  mayor  and  corporation  of  New- 
York.  With  the  utmost  readiness,  and  without 
a  dissenting  voice,  that  body,  in  pursuance  of  a 
report  presented  by  Clinton,  interposed  its  un- 
impeached  credit  in  behalf  of  the  government; 
and,  procuring  from  the  banks  a  loan,  placed 
$  1,400,000  at  the  disposal  of  the  governor. 

In  these  patriotic  exertions  Clinton  derived  the 
most  steady  and  efficient  support  from  members  of 
the  corporation.  Among  these  are  particularly  to 
be  remembered  Aldermen  Fish,  Mapes,  and  Law 
rence.  The  first  an  old  soldier  of  the  Revolution, 
and  the  brother  in  arms  of  Hamilton  ;  the  second, 
who,  although  a  tradesman,  exhibited  in  the  dis 
cipline  of  a  militia  brigade,  of  which  he  was  the 
commander,  and  which  was  called  into  the  service, 
a  high  degree  of  military  talent ;  the  third  a  bank 
er,  who,  by  his  judicious  administration  of  the 
finances  of  the  city,  had  raised  its  credit  from  a 
low  ebb,  until  it  was  far  superior  to  that  of  either 
the  general  or  state  governments. 

In  the  negotiations  which  attended  this  loan,  an 
incident  occurred  which  may  be  here  cited  as  ex 
hibiting  the  character  of  the  man  who  speedily 
became  the  opponent  and  persecutor  of  Clinton, 
who  had  raised  him  from  obscurity.  The  corpora 
tion  had  stipulated  that  it  should  receive  United 


204:  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY 

States'  treasury  notes  as  vouchers  for  the  loan  thus 
made  to  the  general  government.  The  comptroll 
er,  Mr.  Mercein,  waited  on  the  governor,  by  ap 
pointment,  with  one  of  the  instalments.  The  notes 
were  exhibited  to  him,  wanting  only  the  signature 
of  Tompkins,  who  stated  that  a  wish  to  be  present 
at  the  approaching  confinement  of  his  lady  com 
pelled  him  to  set  off  that  afternoon  for  Albany, 
and  that  he  would  take  it  as  a  favour  if  the  exe 
cution  of  these  notes  were  postponed  until  his  re 
turn.  The  comptroller,  without  hesitation,  com 
plied  with  the  request ;  and  there  is  no  doubt  that 
the  governor  did  at  the  time  intend  to  fulfil  his 
promise.  But,  in  the  interval,  other  pressing  de 
mands  arose,  and  the  treasury  notes  were  applied 
to  other  purposes.  It  now  became  a  question  of 
personal  veracity  between  the  governor  and  the 
comptroller ;  the  former  denying  that  he  had 
given  the  promise,  the  latter  asserting  it.  The 
general  government,  in  the  end,  made  good  the 
amount,  and  the  comptroller  was  relieved  from  his 
responsibility,  so  that  the  pecuniary  part  of  the  dis 
pute  was  adjusted.  In  the  denial,  however,  Tomp- 
kins  had  forgotten,  what  the  comptroller  was  not 
aware  of,  that  a  witness  was  present  at  the  confer 
ence,  who  can,  even  at  this  late  period,  bear  his 
testimony  to  the  correctness  of  the  statement  of 
the  latter.  A  young  officer,  charged  with  exhib 
iting  to  the  governor  the  report  on  the  fortifica- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  205 

tions  at  Haerlem  and  Brooklyn,  was  in  the  room 
when  the  comptroller  was  announced,  and  was 
requested  by  the  governor  to  take  a  seat,  and  wait 
until  the  business  with  the  comptroller  was  trans 
acted.  The  transaction,  according  to  his  recollec 
tion,  was  in  all  respects  conformable  to  the  state 
ment  of  Mr.  Mercein.  It  would  therefore  appear 
that  the  governor,  when  he  applied  the  treasury 
notes  to  other  purposes,  and  found  he  could  not  re 
place  them,  preferred  the  sacrifice  of  a  political 
opponent  to  a  controversy  with  the  administration, 
into  which  he  must  have  entered  had  he  maintain 
ed,  as  he  ought,  the  claims  of  the  City  of  New- 
York. 

The  same  weakness  was  the  cause  of  a  subse 
quent  dispute  in  accounts  between  Tompkins  and 
the  comptroller  of  the  State  of  New-York,  in 
which  the  difference  amounted  to  a  very  large 
sum.  No  one  now  believes  that  he  was  actually 
a  defaulter,  or  had  applied  money  to  his  own  pur 
poses  ;  but  he  yielded  to  the  necessities  of  the 
general  government,  and  appropriated  to  its  ser 
vice  moneys  intrusted  by  the  State  of  New-York; 
and  the  state,  with  a  true  sense  of  its  dignity,  for 
gave  him  the  debt,  although  he  had  not  taken  the 
proper  steps  for  enabling  it  to  be  recovered  from 
the  administration  at  Washington. 

On  another  occasion,  the  influence  of  Clinton 
with  the  body  over  whose  deliberations  he  presi- 


206  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

ded  was  materially  of  use  to  the  general  govern 
ment.  A  steam  ship-of-war  was  building  under 
the  direction  of  Fulton,  and  the  government  was 
unable  to  supply  the  funds  for  continuing  the  work. 
An  application  was  in  consequence  made  to  the 
corporation  of  New -York  for  aid ;  but  the  finance 
committee,  looking  into  it  only  as  a  matter  of  busi 
ness,  had  determined  to  report  against  a  grant,  be 
cause  it  would  unnecessarily  involve  the  city  in 
debt.  In  this  emergency  Clinton  interposed,  and 
was  successful  in  convincing  the  committee  that 
the  loan  ought  to  be  made. 

We  thus  see  that  Clinton  was  in  favour  of  a 
war  with  Great  Britain ;  that  no  sooner  was  war 
declared  than  he  gave  the  government  his  undi 
vided  support ;  that  he  was  foremost  in  the  meas 
ures  of  defence  by  which  the  City  of  New- York 
was  rendered  inaccessible  to  the  marauding  bands 
of  Ross  and  Cockburn ;  and  that  he  was  the  first 
mover  in  the  measures  by  which  the  necessary 
funds  were  raised  for  the  purpose.  If,  in  the  ac 
tion  of  the  corporation  on  the  first  two  points,  he 
was  aided  by  his  ancient  opponents  in  that  body, 
he  was  not  less  assisted  in  the  financial  part  of  the 
operation  by  many  who  had  not  yet  abandoned 
the  name  and  the  party  distinctions  of  federalists. 
Rufus  King  addressed  a  large  assemblage  of  citi 
zens  at  the  Tontine  Coffee  House  in  aid  of  the 
contemplated  loan;  and  a  great  number  of  citi- 


DEWTTT     CLINTON.  207 

zens  of  the  federal  party  enrolled  themselves  as 
volunteers. 

On  this  occasion  the  old  party  lines  were  com 
pletely  obliterated ;  no  trace  of  affection  for  Great 
Britain  remained  in  any  mind,  and  the  very  name 
of  federalist  only  exists  to  be  used  as  a  mode  of 
discrediting  a  political  adversary  in  the  minds  of 
the  ignorant.  The  only  wonder  is,  that,  in  a  com 
munity  where  the  means  of  education  are  so  easily 
accessible  to  all,  its  good  sense  should  not  revolt 
at  the  employment  of  terms,  the  meaning  of  which 
has  long  been  obliterated. 

Governor  Tompkins  reaped  the  full  fruit  of  his 
ingenious  policy.  Thirty  thousand  militia,  inclu 
ding  the  flower  of  the  youth  of  the  state,  and 
many  of  the  most  promising  of  the  party  opposed 
to  the  administration,  were  soon  dispersed  to  carry 
throughout  the  state  the  tidings  of  the  affability, 
the  kindness,  the  devoted  patriotism,  and,  as  many 
faithfully  believed,  the  great  military  talent  of  the 
governor ;  while  the  citizens  of  New- York  hailed 
him  as  their  champion  and  saviour.  He  was  thus 
clothed  with  sufficient  power  to  use  it  to  the  injury 
of  Clinton,  who  was  removed  from  his  office  of 
mayor  in  1815.  It  was  attempted  to  justify  his  re 
moval  on  the  grounds  of  his  being  originally  an  op 
ponent  of  the  war,  and  of  being  wanting  in  patri 
otism  to  support  it.  How  futile  such  charges  were, 
the  facts  we  have  cited  will  show.  Nor  were  they 
believed  by  the  community,  as  will  speedily  appear. 

R 


208  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

To  show  how  completely  all  party  lines  had 
been  obliterated  by  the  war,  and  that  opposition 
to  the  measures  which  led  to  it  was  not  felt,  how 
ever  strongly  it  might  be  proclaimed  as  a  disqual 
ification,  the  successor  of  Clinton  in  the  office  of 
mayor,  in  1815,  was  his  federal  opponent,  Jacob 
RadclifF,  who,  on  the  temporary  ascendency  of  his 
party  in  1810,  had  already  superseded  Clinton  in 
the  same  office. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  canal  question  slumber 
ed.  The  commissioners,  indeed,  made  a  report 
in  March,  1814,  in  which  the  plan  of  an  incli 
ned  plane  was  in  express  terms  abandoned ;  but, 
within  the  next  month,  the  authority  granted  to 
them  to  contract  for  a  loan  was  annulled  by  a 
clause  in  the  supply  bill,  where  it  had  been  pla 
ced,  as  being  there  unlikely  to  attract  attention  or 
excite  debate. 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  Governor  Tompkins 
had  it  in  his  power  to  renew,  by  an  official  sug 
gestion,  the  attention  of  the  public  to  the  canal 
policy.  No  man  could  have  exposed  the  necessi 
ty  and  importance  of  a  system  of  internal  commu 
nication  in  more  exact  accordance  with  his  own 
particular  views  than  he.  These  views  were  all 
warlike,  and  directed  to  preparation  for  renewed 
hostilities  with  Great  Britain.  He  had  seen  can 
non  dragged  by  land  from  Washington  to  Sack- 
ett's  Harbour,  to  arm  the  fleet  which  disputed  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  209 

command  of  Lake  Ontario,  and  an  enormous  ex 
pense  incurred  in  other  ways  for  want  of  easy 
communications.  This  glorious  opportunity  of 
calling  the  attention  of  the  public  to  canals,  as  the 
most  efficient  means  of  security  against  attack,  or 
of  collecting  forces  and  material  for  offensive 
operations,  was  lost  by  him.  He  had  it  in  his 
power  to  make  himself  the  leader  of  that  incon- 
trollable  spirit  which  speedily  manifested  itself,  but 
he  neglected  it. 

In  the  mean  time,  Clinton,  removed  from  all 
official  station,  and  abandoned  by  all  political  as 
sociates  except  a  few  personal  friends,  saw  that 
the  moment  had  arrived  for  renewing  his  exertions 
on  behalf  of  the  cause  of  canals.  His  means  of 
success  were  immeasurably  diminished  from  the 
time  in  which  he  led,  in  the  councils  of  the  state, 
the  solid  and  disciplined  party  to  whose  command 
Tompkins  had  now  succeeded,  and  could  count  on 
the  patriotic  concurrence  of  such  men  as  Platt,  Van 
Rensselaer,  and  Morris,  the  leaders  of  his  oppo 
nents  in  all  other  measures.  The  diminution  of 
his  own  immediate  political  resources  did  not  dis 
may  him.  He  trusted  to  the  good  sense  and  the 
sound  patriotism  of  his  fellow-citizens,  satisfied 
that,  could  he  obtain  an  impartial  hearing,  the 
cause  of  internal  improvement  must  triumph.  He 
therefore,  in  the  autumn  of  1815,  called  to  his 
aid  Platt,  thus  repaying  the  confidence  which  that 


210  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

gentleman  had,  on  the  former  occasion,  reposed  in 
him,  and  with  him  that  of  William  Bayard,  who 
then  stood  at  the  head  of  the  mercantile  commu 
nity  in  the  city,  of  Thomas  Eddy,  his  old  associate 
in  the  canal  commission,  of  John  Swartwout,  who 
forgot  on  this  occasion  their  old  strife  even  to 
blood,  of  Cadwallader  D.  Golden,  and  of  several 
other  influential  and  distinguished  citizens.  In 
conformity  with  a  public  call,  a  meeting  was  con 
vened  at  the  City  Hotel,  which,  by  the  exertions  of 
his  coadjutors,  was  numerously  attended.  Before 
this  meeting,  a  draught  of  a  memorial,  prepared 
by  Clinton,  was  laid  and  unanimously  adopted. 

This  memorial  was  then  circulated  throughout 
the  state  for  signatures,  and  wras  everywhere  re 
ceived  with  enthusiasm  and  subscribed  with  avid- 
ity. 

There  have,  in  the  course  of  American  history, 
been  a  few  instances  in  which  a  single  able  state 
paper,  appealing  to  the  patriotism  and  good  sense 
of  the  people  in  opposition  to  the  cry  of  party  or 
the  force  of  prejudice,  has  changed  the  whole 
course  of  public  sentiment,  or  created  a  new  im 
pulse  by  which  that  sentiment  was  directed  into 
channels  before  unexplored.  Among  such  in 
stances  we  may  cite  the  proclamation  of  neutrali 
ty  by  Washington,  and  that  in  opposition  to  the 
doctrine  of  nullification  by  Jackson.  The  memo 
rial  in  relation  to  the  canals  had  a  similar  influ- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  211 

ence  within  a  less  extended  sphere.  It  exhibited 
the  practicability  of  the  canal  to  Lake  Erie  in  so 
clear  a  light,  and  demonstrated  its  advantages 
over  the  route  by  Lake  Ontario  so  evidently,  that 
the  first  was  never  again  questioned  even  for  po 
litical  effect,  and  the  last,  sunk  into  oblivion.  It 
showed  that  the  canal  was  not  only  practicable, 
but  that  the  benefits  it  would  confer  on  the  state 
were  such  that  it  would  be  an  advisable  measure 
even  were  it  to  return  no  revenue.  It  entered  at 
full  length  into  an  estimate  of  the  cost  of  the  ca 
nal,  and  demonstrated  that  the  resources  of  the 
state  wrere  adequate  to  its  construction  even  in 
default  of  any  large  income  from  tolls.  Finally, 
with  feelings  of  extended  patriotism,  it  proceeded 
from  the  local  benefits  to  be  conferred  on  the  State 
of  New- York,  to  the  influence  of  such  a  work 
upon  the  general  prosperity  of  the  nation,  and  its 
effect  in  drawing  more  closely  the  bonds  of  union 
among  the  states.  The  argument  of  this  report 
wras  so  convincing,  its  appeal  to  feelings  of  indi 
vidual  interest,  of  state  pride,  and  national  glory 
so  irresistible,  that  for  the  moment  all  opposition  to 
the  scheme  was  silenced. 

Had  Clinton  performed  no  other  act  in  relation 
to  the  canal  system  than  to  compile  the  informa 
tion  collected  in  this  memorial,  digest  its  argu 
ment,  and  recommend  it  to  public  attention  by 
the  weight  of  his  name  and  of  his  political  and 


212  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

personal  influence,  he  would  have  been  entitled  to 
stand  iirst  in  the  list  of  the  promoters  of  this  vast 
and  useful  enterprise.  But  when  we  consider 
that,  in  addition  to  the  long  and  devoted  atten 
tion  which  was  necessary  to  prepare  this  report, 
the  broad  and  statesman-like  views  which  it  ex 
hibited,  and  the  great  authority  of  his  name  in 
procuring  its  consideration  and  extensive  adop 
tion,  he  from  this  time  made  the  furtherance  of 
the  canal  policy  the  prominent  mark  of  his  noble 
ambition,  the  services  of  all  other  persons,  how 
ever  eminent,  sink  into  insignificance.  No  other 
person  ventured  on  the  support  of  this  policy 
the  adherence  of  his  friends,  his  well-earned  rep 
utation  as  a  statesman,  his  character  for  prudence 
and  foresight,  and,  finally,  all  his  prospects  of  fu 
ture  elevation  in  political  life:  all  these,  and  they 
were  a  mighty  stake,  Clinton  committed  to  the 
hazard  of  the  success  or  failure  of  the  canal  poli 
cy.  The  fears  of  his  timid  friends  he  allayed; 
the  remonstrances  of  those  who  saw  a  surer  way 
for  him  to  regain  his  political  influence  he  disre 
garded,  even  at  the  cost  of  seeing  them  join  the 
ranks  of  his  enemies;  he  was  too  well  satisfied  of 
the  accuracy  of  his  calculations  to  dread  the  judg 
ment  of  posterity  upon  his  prediction;  and  he 
willingly  placed  all  his  future  hopes  of  rank  and 
distinction  upon  the  accomplishment  of  this  single 
measure. 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  213 


CHAPTER  XVL 

Memorial  is  presented  to  the  Legislature. — Final 
Report  of  the  Old  Board  of  Commissioners. — 
Law  to  provide  for  the  Improvement  of  the  In- 
ternal  Navigation  of  the  State.  —  The  New 
Board  of  Commissioners  enter  upon  their  du 
ties.  —  Their  Report.  —  Vast  amount  of  field- 
work  performed  under  their  direction. — Scheme 
of  Finance. — Law  of  Congress  for  promoting 
Internal  Improvements. — Its  Rejection  by  Pres 
ident  Madison  as  unconstitutional. — Modifica 
tions  rendered  necessary  in  the  Scheme  of  Fi 
nance. — The  Bill  to  authorize  the  construction 
of  the  Canal  becomes  a  Law. — Opposition  of  the 
City  Delegation. — The  Canal  Policy  made  by 
them  a  party  question. 

THE  memorial  of  which  we  have  spoken  in  the 
last  chapter  was  signed  by  a  great  number  of  per 
sons  in  the  city  of  New- York ;  it  was  enforced  by 
a  recommendation  from  the  corporation  of  that 
city,  and  seconded  by  the  action  of  public  meet 
ings  in  Albany,  and  nearly  all  the  towns  and  vil 
lages  to  the  west  and  north  of  that  place.  It 
was  presented  to  the  Legislature  about  the  same 
time  with  the  final  report  of  the  old  board  of  com- 


214  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

mission ers.  This  report  refers  to  the  number  and 
respectability  of  the  applications  before  the  Le 
gislature  in  favour  of  an  immediate  prosecution  of 
the  canal,  as  an  evidence  that  its-  advantages  were 
appreciated  by  the  citizens  of  the  state.  The  re 
port,  in  addition,  recommends  the  construction  of 
the  Champlain  Canal,  and  urges  the  superiority  of 
the  Erie  over  the  Ontario  route.  The  original 
draught,  as  in  former  cases,  had  been  made  by 
Morris;  but,  in  consequence  of  alterations  made 
in  it  by  the  other  commissioners,  he  declined  to 
sign  it. 

The  time  had  passed  when  eloquent  declama 
tion  could  be  received  as  a  substitute  for  sound 
practical  views.  The  community  had  been  ex 
cited  to  the  examination  of  the  project  upon  its 
real  merits  by  the  brilliant  effusions  of  Morris, 
but  had,  on  consideration,  seen  that  they  pointed 
out  schemes  which  were  impracticable.  To  this 
expressed  will  of  the  people  the  commissioners 
found  themselves  compelled  to  conform ;  and,  in 
spite  of  the  respect  they  entertained  for  the  char 
acter  of  that  distinguished  man,  they,  with  abso 
lute  unanimity,  concurred  in  the  amendments  and 
alterations. 

Clinton,  after  the  presentation  of  the  memorial, 
proceeded  to  Albany  to  enforce,  by  his  personal 
and  political  influence,  its  favourable  reception, 
and  to  urge  its  being  acted  upon  Although 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  215 

many  friends  of  the  measure  were  desirous  of  ob 
taining  authority  to  commence  the  work,  no  more 
was  gained  from  the  Legislature  than  the  means 
of  proceeding  with  the  inquiry,  in  such  manner 
that  the  surveys,  which  had  hitherto  been  confined 
to  mere  exploration,  should  be  directed  to  the  ac 
tual  location,  and  the  rude  calculations  made  from 
partial  researches  extended  into  close  and  accu 
rate  estimates  of  the  probable  cost.  Clinton  and 
the  other  memorialists  prudently  abstained  from 
jeoparding  their  cause,  by  insisting  upon  any  com 
mittal  on  the  part  of  the  state,  until  such  estimates 
could  be  submitted,  or  any  appropriation  beyond 
the  cost  of  survey,  until  a  scheme  of  finance  had 
been  prepared  adequate  to  the  magnitude  of  the 
operation. 

In  compliance  with  the  prayer  of  the  memorial, 
an  act  was  passed  on  the  17th  April,  1816,  "to 
provide  for  the  improvement  of  the  internal  nav 
igation  of  the  state."  In  this  act  Stephen  Van 
Rensselaer,  Dewitt  Clinton,  Samuel  Young,  My 
ron  Holley,  and  Joseph  Elliott,  were  named  com 
missioners.  Their  prescribed  duties  were  to  con 
sider  and  devise  such  measures  as  might  be  neces 
sary  to  connect  Hudson  River  with  Lake  Cham- 
plain  and  Lake  Erie;  they  were  required  to  re 
port  within  twenty  days  after  the  commencement 
of  the  next  annual  session  of  the  Legislature;  and 


216  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

$20,000  were  appropriated  for  the  expenses  ol 
the  inquiry. 

No  time  was  lost  by  the  commissioners  in  enter 
ing  upon  their  duties,  and  sufficient  corps  of  engi 
neers  were  forthwith  organized.  Three  of  the 
commissioners  assumed  active  duties  in  the  field, 
and,  dividing  the  work  into  the  same  number  of 
parts,  pressed  the  performance  of  the  surveys  in 
person.  These  gentlemen,  thus  devoting  their 
whole  time  to  the  work,  were  entitled  to,  and  re 
ceived  a  compensation  for  their  services.  Clinton 
and  Van  Rensselaer,  who  performed  at  least  equal 
services  in  another  manner,  would  accept  of  no 
remuneration. 

Clinton  devoted  much  attention,  during  the  re 
cess  of  the  Legislature,  to  the  consideration  of  a 
scheme  of  finance.  The  first  point  to  be  ascer 
tained  was  the  possibility  of  borrowing  a  sufficient 
amount,  provided  satisfactory  security  could  be  ex 
hibited.  For  this  purpose  he  placed  himself  in 
communication  with  the  most  intelligent  merchants 
of  the  City  of  New- York  ;  and,  as  the  intercourse 
with  Europe  was  reopened,  he  had  an  opportunity, 
which  he  sedulously  improved,  of  consulting  the 
travellers  who  had  repaired  to  England  on  the  ces 
sation  of  hostilities,  and  were  from  time  to  time  re 
turning.  All  accounts  seemed  to  encourage  the 
hope  that  no  difficulty  would  be  experienced  in 
raising  sufficient  funds.  A  more  important  obsta- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  217 

cle  was  therefore  to  be  overcome,  that  of  devising 
a  system  of  finance.  The  Legislature  had  indeed, 
on  a  former  occasion,  clothed  the  old  board  of 
commissioners  with  power  to  borrow  five  millions 
of  dollars  on  the  simple  pledge  of  the  faith  of 
the  state.  Clinton,  whatever  may  have  been  his 
opinion  on  a  former  occasion,  was  now  satisfied  of 
the  cardinal  principle,  that  no  debt  ought  in  any 
event  to  be  contracted  by  a  government,  unless  a 
fund  were  at  the  same  time  provided  for  paying 
its  interest  and  for  its  final  redemption.  The  in 
come  of  the  canal  itself  might,  indeed,  be  calcula 
ted  upon  for  a  part,  if  not  the  whole,  of  the  latter 
object ;  but  he  felt  convinced,  that  even  if  the  ab 
solute  maintenance  of  the  public  faith  did  not  re 
quire  an  income  to  be  provided  from  other  sources, 
yet  the  rate  of  interest  at  which  a  loan  could  be 
procured  would  be  much  lessened  by  exhibiting 
to  the  lender  a  pledge  of  resources  which  would 
render  his  remuneration  sure,  even  were  the  proj 
ect  on  which  the  capital  should  be  expended  to 
fail. 

The  commonplace-book  of  Clinton  abounds 
with  extracts  made  by  him  at  this  period  from 
the  best  authors  on  the  principles  of  finance  and 
the  management  of  a  public  debt,  and  manifests 
how  attentively  he  studied  this  subject,  and  what 
labour  he  devoted  to  master  the  details. 

The  great  success  of  the  New-York  canals  has 


2 18  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

stimulated  almost  every  other  state  of  the  Union  to 
similar  enterprises.  Many  of  these  have  been 
judiciously  planned  and  successfully  prosecuted. 
They  have  furnished  in  such  cases  revenues  which 
have  at  least  paid  the  interest  on  their  cost.  There 
are,  again,  other  instances,  in  which  the  plan  has 
been  so  far  judicious,  that  new  wealth  has  been  cre 
ated  more  than  equal  to  the  expenditure  on  the  im 
provement,  but  where  the  income  has  barely  defray 
ed  the  cost  of  maintaining  the  work.  The  ease 
with  which  New- York  has  paid  its  interest,  and  the 
rapidity  with  which  the  sinking-fund  has  accumu 
lated  to  the  full  amount  of  the  original  debt,  has 
raised  the  credit  of  the  nation  in  foreign  marts,  and 
has  afforded  to  other  states  facilities  for  loans  which 
even  New- York  did  not  at  first  enjoy.  The  mere 
pledge  of  the  public  faith  has,  in  consequence,  been 
of  late  found  sufficient  to  obtain  a  loan.  It  has 
thus  happened,  that,  in  almost  all  recent  instances, 
the  wise  precaution  taken  by  the  State  of  New- 
York  has  been  neglected.  Public  works  have  been 
commenced  to  an  extent  wholly  unauthorized  by 
the  business  and  population  of  the  states  to  which 
they  belong ;  no  other  funds  than  the  prospective 
income  of  the  finished  work  have  been  thought  of; 
and,  in  almost  all  cases,  the  borrower,  instead  of 
endeavouring  to  ensure  the  redemption  of  the  debt 
by  a  fund  accumulating  at  compound  interest,  has 
trusted  to  new  loans  to  meet  the  interest  itself,  and 


DEWITT     CLINTON. 

thus  allowed  the  debt  to  accumulate  in  the  same 
rapid  manner.  Such  is  the  consequence  of  this 
method  of  accumulation,  that  if,  on  the  one  hand, 
the  smallest  excess  of  fund  over  and  above  the  in 
terest  must  in  the  end  extinguish  the  debt,  on  the 
other  the  debt  will  increase  so  fast,  that  the  most 
brilliant  final  success  will  hardly  be  sufficient  to  re 
duce  it  when  thus  compounded. 

The  system  of  borrowing  without  an  intermedi 
ate  provision  for  the  interest  is  besides  objection 
able,  inasmuch  as  the  rate  of  interest  will  be  con 
tinually  rising  upon  the  borrower,  until  it  may 
happen  that  the  funds  for  the  completion  of  the 
works  of  improvement  cannot  be  obtained,  and 
thus  the  anticipated  revenue  may  never  be  real 
ized. 

It  is  by  a  neglect  of  this  cardinal  principle  that 
the  new  states  of  the  Union  are  at  this  moment 
suffering  under  the  evils  of  a  total  prostration  of 
credit,  and  public  works,  undertaken  and  carried 
on  at  a  vast  expense,  are  lying  unfinished,  and,  con 
sequently,  unproductive. 

The  question  whether  a  public  debt  is  to  have 
its  interest  and  final  redemption  provided  for  at  the 
moment  it  is  contracted,  or  whether  it  is  to  be 
sanctioned  by  a  simple  pledge  of  the  public  faith, 
has  been  among  the  distinctive  characters  of  the 
two  great  schools  of  politicians  which  have  divi 
ded  our  country  from  the  time  it  became  independ- 


220  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

ent.  At  the  head  of  one  school  stands  Hamilton, 
and  at  that  of  the  other  Jefferson.  In  the  practi 
cal  action  of  the  general  government,  no  injury  has 
arisen  from  the  predominance  of  the  opinions  of 
the  latter.  The  great  debt  contracted  during  the 
war  of  1812  has  been  redeemed  by  the  proceeds 
of  the  national  domain,  and  the  people,  as  a  body, 
have  not  felt  it  as  a  burden.  But  the  states  stand 
in  a  very  different  position;  they  have,  as  a  general 
rule,  no  landed  estate  to  resort  to  for  the  payment  of 
their  loans;  and  any  great  debt  contracted  by  them, 
beyond  the  limit  which  can  be  sustained  by  an  ex 
isting  revenue,  must  be  followed  by  breach  of  faith, 
or  even  by  absolute  bankruptcy.  It  is  highly  to 
the  credit  of  Clinton,  that,  educated  in  the  school 
of  Jefferson,  and  holding  all  its  tenets,  he  was  en 
abled  to  free  himself  from  its  shackles  in  this  point 
of  policy. 

The  canal  commissioners  reported  in  due  season 
to  the  Legislature.  It  appeared  that  440  miles  of 
canal  had  been  traced  upon  the  ground,  and  the 
cost  of  construction  estimated.  This  was  found  to 
be  nearly  six  millions  of  dollars ;  and  it  is  one  of 
the  peculiar  features  of  the  history  of  the  canal, 
that,  in  spite  of  the  amount  of  work  in  survey  and 
calculation  being  greater  than  had  ..ever  before 
been  performed  in  so  short  a  space  of  time  and  at 
so  small  a  cost,  the  actual  construction  has  differed 
less  from  the  estimate  than  in  almost  any  similar 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  221 

instance.  The  commissioners,  in  order  to  ensure 
this,  had  laid  it  down  as  a  principle,  that  every 
probable  expense  should  be  included  in  the  esti 
mate,  and  every  possible  contingency  provided 
for.  Such,  however,  was  the  distrust,  arising 
from  experience  of  the  inaccuracy  of  estimates, 
that  many  of  the  best  friends  of  the  measure  feared 
that  the  anticipations  of  the  commissioners  were 
too  sanguine,  while  those  opposed  to  it  maintained 
that  the  estimates  were  made  up  with  a  view  to 
deceive,  in  order  to  embark  the  state  in  a  project 
which,  if  once  begun,  must  be  completed,  whatever 
might  be  the  cost. 

When  the  report  had  been  presented  and  refer 
red,  the  committee  to  whose  charge  it  was  intrust 
ed  asked  from  the  commissioners  the  draught  of 
a  law  providing  for  the  construction  of  the  canal 
and  creating  a  system  of  finance.  This  draught 
was  made  by  Clinton.  The  scheme  of  finance 
created  a  canal  fund,  vested  in  a  board,  and  pledg 
ed  the  faith  of  the  state  that  it  should  not  be  di 
verted.  No  pledge  wras  originally  given  in  the 
draught  of  the  credit  of  the  state,  to  provide  for 
either  principal  or  interest,  beyond  the  fund  point 
ed  out  and  made  sacred.  The  question  of  finance 
appeared  to  have  been  much  simplified,  at  the  mo 
ment  the  report  was  presented,  by  an  act  which 
had  just  passed  both  Houses  of  Congress.  By 
this  act,  the  income  of  the  stock  held  by  the  gov- 


222  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

ernment  in  the  Bank  of  the  United  States  was 
directed  to  be  distributed  among  the  several  states 
for  the  purpose  of  internal  improvements.  Under 
it  the  State  of  New-York  would  have  received 
$90,000  per  annum,  which  would  have  been 
equivalent  to  the  interest  on  a  loan  sufficient  to 
meet  the  estimated  cost  of  one  fourth  of  the  canal. 
Upon  this  liberal  measure,  which  would  have  dif 
fused  wealth  and  happiness  throughout  the  Union, 
Mr.  Madison  set  his  veto  in  the  very  last  moment 
of  his  administration.  The  cause  assigned  for  this 
measure  was,  that  the  law  was  unconstitutional ; 
yet  he  at  the  same  moment  approved  a  law  making 
a  large  appropriation  for  the  Cumberland  road, 
and  another  making  a  grant  to  a  road  in  Tennes 
see.  The  nice  casuistry  by  which  it  has  been  de 
cided  that  certain  public  improvements  fall  within 
the  granted  powers  of  the  general  government, 
while  others  do  not,  is  beyond  the  comprehension 
of  those  who  are  not  accustomed  to  thread  the 
mazes  of  metaphysical  investigation  ;  while  the 
dictates  of  plain  common  sense  would  seem  to  es 
tablish  the  conclusion,  that  the  framers  of  the  Con 
stitution  could  never  have  intended  to  exclude  the 
power  of  granting  the  surplus  funds  of  the  general 
government,  in  a  fair  ratio  of  distribution,  among 
the  individual  states.  The  truth  is,  that  the  prob 
ability  that  the  Union  could  ever  have  a  surplus  of 
income  over  expenditures  seems  never  to  have  oc- 


DEW  ITT    CLINTON.  223 

curred  to  the  framers  of  the  Constitution,  nor  was 
there  any  precedent  in  modern  times  whence  such 
an  anticipation  could  have  been  drawn. 

Those  have  not  been  wanting  who  have  ascribed 
this  act  of  Mr.  Madison  to  a  desire  to  prevent  the 
construction  of  the  New- York  canal.  If  the  ad 
mitted  patriotism  of  that  distinguished  citizen  be 
urged  as  evidence  that  such  could  not  have  been 
the  case,  still  the  assertion  that  such  were  his  mo 
tives  has  been  maintained  by  most  plausible  ar 
guments.  Clinton  was  at  the  moment,  by  his 
strenuous  exertions  in  the  cause  of  internal  im 
provements,  acquiring  a  popularity,  which  one 
whom  he  had  presumed  to  rival  in  the  affections, 
not  only  of  the  country  at  large,  but  of  the  demo 
cratic  party  itself,  might  well  have  desired  to  low 
er.  The  State  of  New- York  was  to  derive  the 
most  direct  apparent  benefit  from  the  grant ;  and  a 
Virginian  might  well  have  desired  to  check  that 
prosperity  which  was  soon  to  place  New-York  in 
the  highest  rank  for  population  and  wealth,  and 
which  has,  in  the  end,  substituted  the  "Empire 
State"  for  the  "  Old  Dominion"  in  its  standing  in 
the  Union.  Personal  rivalry,  political  hostility,  and 
local  prejudice,  may  then  have  reasonably  been  ex 
pected  to  exist  in  the  mind  of  Madison,  if  it  had 
been  capable  of  entertaining  such  feelings. 

The  loss  of  so  large  an  anticipated  source  of  in 
come  rendered  it  necessary  to  amend  the  project 

S 


224  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

of  finance  submitted  by  Clinton,  after  it  had  been 
reported  to  the  House  of  Assembly.  Mr.  Tibbitts, 
then  a  member  of  the  Senate,  claims  that  the 
whole  of  the  important  changes  which  were  made 
in  the  bill,  grew  out  of  his  suggestions. 

Clinton,  in  a  history  of  the  proceedings,  pub 
lished  under  the  signature  of  Tacitus,  ascribes  great 
improvements  in  his  original  draught  to  the  "  use 
ful  suggestions  of  Messrs.  Van  Rensselaer  ( J.  Rut- 
sen),  Tibbitts,  and  Few."  One  of  the  features  in 
troduced  into  the  bill  was  unquestionably  contrary 
to  the  wishes  of  Clinton.  A  large  duty  wras  levied 
by  the  authority  of  the  state  upon  sales  at  auction 
in  the  City  of  New-York.  This  had  at  first  been 
applied  to  local  purposes  within  that  city;  one 
half  had  then  been  withdrawn  for  the  general 
purposes  of  the  state,  and  the  bill,  as  passed,  de 
prived  the  city  of  the  other  half,  and  threw  the 
whole  into  the  canal  fund.  To  this  Clinton  was 
opposed.  He  would  have  preferred  to  see  the  ex 
ecution  of  his  darling  project  delayed  rather  than 
give  his  sanction  to  an  act  of  injustice.  The  auc 
tion  duty  has  been  represented,  and  thus  its  diver 
sion  into  the  general  funds  of  the  state  justified, 
as  a  tax  upon  the  consumer,  when  all  who  have 
watched  its  operation  know  that  it  falls  almost 
wholly  on  the  importers  of  the  City  of  New- York, 
who  voluntarily  submit  to  it  as  the  price  of  a  more 
speedy  and  safe  return  for  their  capital. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  225 

On  the  other  hand,  a  feature  which  contributed 
mainly  to  the  passage  of  the  bill,  and  which  was 
just  in  itself,  was  introduced  by  William  A.  Duer. 
He  was  a  representative  from  one  of  the  counties 
which  could  not,  in  any  event,  be  benefited,  and 
might  possibly  be  injured  by  the  construction  of 
the  canal;  and  his  constituents  were,  in  conse 
quence,  opposed  to  it,  particularly  if  it  would 
have  subjected  them  to  any  risk  of  taxation  for 
its  support  In  order  to  conciliate  this  opposition, 
he  added  a  clause  to  the  bill,  by  which  the  lands 
for  twenty-five  miles  on  each  side  of  the  canal 
were  made  liable  to  taxation.  This  went  far  to 
satisfy  those  parts  of  the  state  which  derived  no 
immediate  advantage  from  the  construction  of  the 
canal,  and  was  not  objected  to  by  its  friends.  Cir 
cumstances  have  rendered  it  unnecessary,  but  the 
strict  justice  of  the  measure,  and  its  expediency  at 
the  moment,  no  one  can  doubt. 

In  the  Senate,  Mr.  Van  Buren,  the  present  Pres 
ident  of  the  United  States,  who  had  in  the  prece 
ding  session  opposed  any  measures  beyond  those  of 
inquiry,  and  had,  in  consequence,  been  considered 
as  hostile  to  the  canal,  came  out  as  its  supporter ; 
and,  not  content  with  supporting  the  bill  as  it  came 
from  the  Assembly,  proposed  the  addition  of  a 
clause  pledging  the  general  credit  of  the  state  in 
addition  to  the  funds  set  apart  as  sacred  for  the  re 
demption  of  the  canal  debt  This  addition,  if  ad- 


226  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY, 

milled  lo  have  aided  in  obtaining  the  necessary 
funds,  has  not  been  salutary  either  to  the  State  oi 
New-York,  or  as  an  example  to  other  states.  The 
revenue  of  the  canal  fund,  and  the  income  of  the 
canal,  if  kept  separate  upon  the  books  of  account 
from  the  general  finances  of  the  state,  have,  in 
point  of  fact,  been  mixed  with  them  into  one  com 
mon  mass.  The  state,  apparently  possessed  of  am 
ple  funds,  has  abandoned  taxation  as  a  source  of 
revenue  for  its  annual  expenses,  and  is  thus  largely 
in  debt  to  the  canal  fund ;  while  the  enlargement 
of  the  canal  itself,  and  the  extension  of  the  benefits 
of  internal  improvement  to  other  regions  of  the 
state,  has  been  retarded,  if  not  prevented  alto 
gether. 

That  the  canal  shall,  by  its  operation,  have 
done  away  the  necessity  of  continuing  to  resort  to 
an  annual  tax,  is,  however,  one  of  its  most  popular 
features. 

After  a  long  and  severe  contest,  the  bill  at  last 
passed  both  houses  of  the  Legislature.  This  re 
sult  may  be  ascribed  almost  wholly  to  the  exer 
tions  of  Clinton,  who,  going  before  a  legislature, 
a  majority  of  which  was  either  actually  opposed 
or  wholly  indifferent  on  the  subject,  brought  pub 
lic  opinion  to  bear  upon  its  members  with  such 
force,  that  opponents  were  converted  or  silenced, 
and  the  indifferent  convinced. 

Even  after  the  battle  had  been  fought  in  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  227 

Legislature,  a  difficulty  remained  to  be  overcome 
in  obtaining  its  passage  through  the  council  of 
revision.  This  was  achieved  by  the  vote  of  Chan 
cellor  Kent,  who  had  doubts  for  a  time  as  to  the 
feasibility  of  the  project ;  but,  according  to  his  own 
statement,  was  brought  to  give  a  casting  vote  in 
its  favour  by  the  very  arguments  which  Governor 
Tompkins  urged  against  it 

Among  the  steady  and  determined  opponents 
of  the  canal  bill,  in  every  stage,  were  the  delega 
tion  in  Assembly  of  the  City  of  New-York,  and  the 
senators  of  the  Southern  District.  The  former 
had  been  elected  in  the  place  of  a  delegation 
which  was  friendly  to  the  canal,  and  in  declared 
opposition  to  the  name  and  the  policy  of  Clinton. 
Hostility  to  him  prevailed  over  all  considerations 
of  public  benefit ;  and  this  being  made  the  ground 
of  their  vote  on  the  canal  question,  converted  the 
decision  of  the  Legislature  into  a  personal  tri 
umph. 

It  thus  happened,  as  in  more  than  one  other  in 
stance,  that  the  measures  adopted  by  the  political 
opponents  of  Clinton  only  brought  out  in  more  dis-  f 
tinct  relief  the  importance  of  his  agency  in  pre 
paring  the  way  for  that  decided  expression  of  pub 
lic  opinion  by  which  the  construction  of  the  canal 
was  in  a  manner  forced  upon  cold  friends  or  de 
cided  enemies.  By  making  the  canal  policy  of 
the  state  a  party  question,  they  compelled  Clinton 


228  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

to  do  the  same,  and  the  attainment  of  the  end  for 
which  he  strove  became  to  him  a  political  victory. 
It  is  thus,  by  the  necessity  under  which  he  was 
placed  of  bringing  the  whole  weight  of  his  influ 
ence  to  bear  upon  the  canal  question,  and  the 
firm  and  unflinching  manner  in  which  he  ventured 
his  whole  political  fortune  on  its  result,  that  his 
name  has  become  inseparable  from  the  history  of 
the  canal  policy  of  the  state.  All  other  persons, 
however  useful  they  may  have  been  in  promoting 
the  desired  result,  made  the  canal  no  more  than  a 
secondary  consideration  in  their  respective  projects 
of  ambition.  Its  success  or  failure  would  neither 
have  elevated  nor  depressed  them  in  the  public 
view,  while  with  Clinton  it  was  the  primary  object 
of  his  aspirations ;  and  its  success  so  far  exalted 
him  in  the  eye  of  the  people,  that  his  political  op 
ponents  were  finally  compelled  to  enter  with  ap 
parent  ardour  into  the  support  of  the  canal  policy 
for  the  purpose  of  defeating  him* 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  229 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

Clinton  is  elected  Governor  of  the  State  of  New- 
York.  —  Apparent  Calm  in  Party  Feelings. — 
Causes  of  renewed  Party  Violence. — Tompkins 
is  held  up  as  a  Candidate  in  opposition  to  him. 
Clint 071' s  Re-election. — Farther  increase  of  Par 
ty  Violence. — Interference  of  the  General  Gov 
ernment. — Personal  Hostility  added  to  Feelings 
of  Party.  —  Important  Measures  recommended 
by  Clinton  and  carried  in  the  Legislature. — 
Character  of  his  Speeches  to  the  Legislature. 

CLINTON,  who  was  brought,  by  his  attendance 
on  the  Legislature,  in  contact  with  a  new  race  of 
political  men,  with  a  Legislature  composed  of 
persons  to  many  of  whom  he  had  hitherto  been  a 
stranger,  received  an  accession  to  his  popularity 
which  was  speedily  manifested  in  an  unexpected 
manner.  Madison's  second  term  as  president  wras 
about  to  expire,  and  Monroe  had  been  elected  his 
successor.  Tompkins,  who  had  been  re-elected 
governor  of  the  state  in  1816,  was  chosen  vice- 
president.  Many  perslSnT^ppEated  to  have  been 
under  the  impression  that  the  vacancy  left  by  his 
acceptance  of  the  office  must  necessarily  be  sup 
plied  during  the  remaining  part  of  the  term  for 


230  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

which  he  had  been  elected,  by  the  lieutenant-gov 
ernor.  There  was  then  no  space  left  for  political 
agitation,  or  the  attempt  to  bias  the  opinion  of  the 
people  by  self-constituted  leaders.  When  it  was 
ascertained  that  the  Constitution  required  the  elec 
tion  of  a  new  governor  for  the  remainder  of  the 
terra  for  which  Tompkins  had  been  chosen,  a 
universal  expression  of  opinion  in  favour  of  Clin 
ton's  nomination  broke  forth.  His  old  democratic 
friends  in  the  country  joined  in  the  general  wish  ; 
the  federal  party,  so  long  his  opponents,  had  ceas 
ed  to  exist  as  an  organized  faction,  and  its  leaders 
admitted  that  they  could  not  recall  it  from  its  dis 
banded  state  to  act  either  in  his  favour  or  against 
him.  The  partisans  who  occupied  Tammany  Hall, 
and  directed  the  movements  of  the  democratic  par 
ty  in  the  city,  retained  the  animosity  which  had 
been  engendered  by  his  faithful  exertions  to  main 
tain  the  public  peace  endangered  at  the  breaking 
out  of  the  war.  A  feeble  attempt  at  opposition 
was  made  by  this  party,  and  Peter  B.  Porter  was 
brought  forward  as  a  candidate  in  opposition  to 
Clinton.  The  struggle,  however,  was  almost  nom-  ,,-y 


inal,  and  the  election  of  Clinton  was  achieved  With 
a  unanimity  unparalleled,  except  in  the  case  of 
his  uncle,  before  party  divisions  had  arisen,  and 
while  the  state  was  partially  overrun  by  an  enemy. 
The  spring  of  1817  was  therefore  a  period  of 
triumph  in  the  life  of  Clinton.  He  had  achieved 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  231 

the  passage  of  a  bill  whichjjnsured  the  construction 
"^oTthe~canal3  a  result  which  had  for  so  many  years 
"freen"ffie  first  object  of  his  wishes;  he  had  receiv 
ed  the  almost  unanimous  expression  of  the  grati 
tude  of  his  fellow-citizens  for  his  long  and  faithful 
services,  under  circumstances  which  showed  that 
lie  was  not  merely  the  idol  of  a  party  ;  in  addi 
tion,  the  successful  termination  of  an  important 
lawsuit  had  relieved  him  from  a  state  approaching 
to  pecuniary  embarrassment.  Every  trace  of  po 
litical  division  seemed  to  have  been  obliterated; 
and  those  unacquainted  with  the  occult  springs 
which  influence  the  actions  of  politicians  thought 
they  saw  in  his  inauguration  as  governor  the  be 
ginning  of  a  political  millennium,  in  which  the 
angry  passions  and  fierce  contests  that  had  been 
engaged  in  the  long  struggle  between  the  federal 
and  democratic  parties  were  to  cease  their  de 
structive  action.  Clinton  himself,  with  all  his  ex 
perience,  was  not  free  from  the  delusion,  and  pro 
nounced  that  in  politics  "  all  was  calm."  The 
calm,  however,  was  deceitful,  and  the  precursor  of 
a  strife  more  imbittered  than  any  which  the  annals 
of  the  politics  of  the  state  have  recorded. 

So  completely  had  the  old  party  distinctions 
been  obliterated,  that  the  Legislature  of  1818, 
calling  itself  republican,  chose  as  senator  of  the 
United  States  Rufus  King,  who  had  been  the  can 
didate  opposed  to  Tompkins  in  1316,  and  was, 


232  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

perhaps,  more  than  any  other  person,  obnoxious  to 
the  old  democratic  party.  In  this  choice,  Clinton, 
who  had  been  so  long  opposed  to  him,  and  who,  al 
though  repudiated  by  the  supporters  of  Tompkins,' 
had  refused  to  sustain  King  when  held  up  as  can 
didate  for  the  office  of  governor,  cordially  united. 

The  opposition  to  Clinton  in  the  city  of  New- 
York  was,  however,  unabated,  and  was  speedily  re- 
enforced  by  the  whole  weight  of  the  executive  in 
fluence  of  the  general  government.  Some  attempts 
had  been  made  by  mutual  friends  to  bring  about  a 
good  understanding  between  President  Monroe 
and  the  governor  of  New- York,  but  they  were  so 
injudiciously  managed  as  to  lead  more  speedily  to 
an  open  breach.  Without  the  necessity  of  believ 
ing  the  charges,  which  the  opposition  have  so  fre 
quently  made,  of  direct  corruption  on  the  part  of 
the  general  government  in  the  elections  of  the 
city,  it  possesses  evidently  a  great  and  powerful  in 
fluence  upon  the  most  active  politicians  by  the  num 
ber  and  value  of  its  custom-house  appointments. 
The  whole  of  this  corps  was  forthwith  banded 
with  the  opponents  of  Clinton's  administration. 

Clinton,  in  his  struggle  with  the  federal  party, 
had  not  been  sparing  in  his  denunciations  and  in 
vectives,  nor  measured  in  the  tone  of  his  speeches 
and  writings.  He  had  also  committed  the  less 
pardonable  offence  of  holding  aloof  when  it  was 
expected  that  he  would  have  joined  them.  The 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  233 

wounds  thus  inflicted  were  but  partially  healed 
and  easily  reopened.  From  causes  which  at  this 
distant  date  can  hardly  be  appreciated,  fifty-one 
gentlemen,  comprising  a  most  formidable  array  of 
talent  and  activity,  joined  in  a  declaration  by  which 
the}  withdrew  themselves  from  the  federal  party, 
and  united  with  the  opponents  of  Clinton.  Many 
of  these  gentlemen,  although  opposed  to  the  war 
in  its  early  stages,  had  been  actively  and  gallant 
ly  engaged  in  the  defence  of  the  country  when 
threatened  by  invasion ;  and  the  leaders  of  the 
democratic  party  in  the  city  were  willing  to  accept 
of  this  service,  with  the  promise  of  their  aid  in  the 
overthrow  of  Clinton,  as  a  compensation  for  their 
ancient  opposition. 

Clinton,  by  the  very  excess  of  his  triumph,  had 
become  possessed  of  the  whole  appointing  power. 
The  first  council  of  appointment  under  his  admin 
istration  was  composed  wholly  of  his  friends,  and 
thus,  for  almost  the  only  session  during  the  exist 
ence  of  that  body,  the  whole  load  of  responsibility 
appeared  to  rest  upon  the  governor.  As  was  natu 
ral,  he  gave  in  appointments  a  decided  preference 
to  the  small  band  of  devoted  friends  who,  during 
the  apparent  downfall  of  his  political  influence 
which  accompanied  his  removal  from  the  office  of 
mayor,  had  remained  steadfast  in  their  affections. 
These  were  obnoxious  from  old  feelings  to  the  fed 
eralists,  and  still  more  so  to  the  democratic  party  of 


234  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

the  city,  which  had  been  taught  to  consider  them  as 
apostates.  From  this  cause,  in  addition  to  the  dis 
satisfaction  arising  from  disappointed  applications, 
a  great  loss  of  popularity  arose,  and  Clinton  had 
not  in  his  hands  the  powerful  engine  of  party  dis 
cipline  by  which  unsuccessful  applicants  for  office 
are  compelled  to  hide  their  griefs. 

The  triumph  of  the  canal  policy  had  produced 
discontent  in  many  of  the  counties  which  derived 
no  direct  benefit  from  it.  This  was  artfully  foster 
ed ;  and,  assigning  to  Clinton  that  prominent  agen 
cy  in  procuring  the  passage  of  the  canal  bill,  and 
creating  the  canal  policy  of  the  state,  which  was 
afterward  denied  him  by  the  same  persons,  an  out 
cry  was  raised  against  what  was  opprobriously 
styled  "  the  big  ditch,"  and  against  Clinton  as  its 
projector  and  supporter. 

The  honest  opponents  of  the  canal  believed  it 
to  be  a  visionary  and  impracticable  scheme.  The 
political  foes  of  Clinton  endeavoured  to  strengthen 
them  in  this  opinion  by  every  possible  argument, 
and  demanded  that  his  political  success  should  be 
made  to  depend  on  the  success  or  failure  of  that 
project.  So  powerful  were  these  arguments  as  to 
shake  the  belief  of  many  of  his  most  earnest  friends, 
and  he  was  strongly  urged  by  many  of  them  to 
separate  his  fortunes  from  an  enterprise,  the  success 
of  which  was  at  least  doubtful.  Clinton  reassured 
them  by  pleading  the  absolute  certainty  of  its  sue- 


D  E  W  1  T  T     C  L  I N  T  O  5.  235 

>,  and  determined  to  risk  the  chance  of  victory 
or  defeat  on  that  question  alone,  which  thus  be 
came  the  main  point  at  issue  in  the  ensuing  elec 
tion. 

The  militia  system,  as  practised  in  the  United 
States,  is  obnoxious  to  ridicule.  That  shopkeepers, 
tailors,  and  attorneys  shall,  by  virtue  of  a  brevet  or 
commission,  attach  high-sounding  military  titles  to 
their  names,  may  easily  be  made  a  matter  of  mer 
riment  to  those  who  forget  that  a  country  shop 
keeper  successfully  defended  the  Niagara  frontier, 
and  carried  the  war  into  the  enemy's  country ; 
that  a  tailor  trained  a  militia  brigade^to  manoeuvre 
as  well  as  regular  troops ;  and  that  an  attorney 
led  the  battalions  which  crossed  bayonets  with  the 
veterans  of  Wellington,  and  drove  them  from  the 
field.  The  ridicule  which  the  system  itself  may 
be  made  to  provoke,  was  poured  upon  the  head  of 
the  functionary  whence  the  commissions  and  bre 
vets  issued. 

His  first  term  of  office  had  been  marked  by  two 
reforms  of  great  moment  in  the  administration  of 
the  laws.  The  first  was  the  reduction  of  the  num 
ber  of  justices'  courts.  These  had  become  an  ab 
solute  nuisance;  the  marshals  were  permitted  to 
act  as  counsel  for  the  plaintiff  in  the  suit,  and 
strong  suspicion  was  entertained  of  collusion  be 
tween  them  and  the  magistrates  whence  they  de 
rived  their  appointments.  At  all  events,  the  great 


236  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

number  of  suits  which  were  decided  in  favour  of 
those  who  brought  business  to  the  court,  gave 
ground  for  a  belief  of  unfair  influence.  By  the 
new  law  nearly  a  thousand  petty  courts  ceased  to 
exist,  with  their  retinue  of  official  harpies. 

A  practice  had  gradually  grown  up  among  attor 
neys  of  buying  up  claims  for  the  purpose  of  prose 
cuting  them.  This  had  reached  to  such  an  extent 
as  to  amount  to  a  serious  evil.  Postested  notes, 
and  other  demands  on  which  the  original  creditor 
would  have  hesitated  to  incur  the  costs,  were, 
wrhen  in  the  hands  of  legal  men,  made  the  source 
of  oppression.  This  system  was  abolished  by 
law,  and  the  taxable  costs  were,  in  addition,  so 
much  reduced  as  to  render  it  not  worth  pursuing. 
The  underlings  of  the  legal  profession  were  much 
enraged  at  this  change,  so  advantageous  for  cli 
ents,  and  one  of  them  was  so  far  carried  away  by 
his  anger  as  to  resign  his  license  in  open  court. 

These  reforms  fell  upon  men  who  are  most  loud 
and  busy  at  elections,  and  arrayed  their  whole 
force  in  enmity  against  Clinton. 

Such  being  the  elements  of  opposition,  and  such 
the  weapons  it  had  in  its  power  to  employ,  it  only 
remained  to  seek  for  a  suitable  candidate  to  run 
against  Clinton  when  the  three  years  for  which  he 
had  been  elected  as  a  substitute  for  Tompkins 
should  have  expired.  Such  a  candidate  was  found 
in  Tompkins  himself,  who,  although  he  had  re- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  237 

signed  the  office  of  governor  in  order  to  accept 
that  of  vice-president,  was  induced  to  oppose 
Clinton ;  and  although,  if  successful,  he  must  re 
turn  to  the  post  whence  he  had  considered  him 
self  promoted.  We  have  already  seen  what  an 
extent  of  popularity  he  had  acquired ;  and  he  was 
the  most  formidable  competitor  who  could  possibly 
have  been  selected. 

Tompkins  had  been  throughout  opposed  to  the 
canal,  and  his  election  would  in  all  probability 
have  been  followed  by  the  cessation  of  all  work 
upon  it,  and  the  withdrawal  of  the  funds  appro 
priated  as  a  pledge,  except  so  far  as  necessary  to 
provide  for  loans  already  contracted.  On  this 
election,  then,  depended  in  a  great  measure  the 
hopes  of  the  system  of  internal  improvement ;  for 
had  Clinton  been  defeated  in  this  instance,  it 
would  have  been  hardly  possible  to  find  any  pol 
itician  who  would  have  renewed  the  consideration 
of  a  question,  on  which  he  had  been  so  signally 
defeated. 

The  election  was  contested  with  great  spirit  on 
both  sides.  The  southern  counties  gave  Tomp 
kins  large  majorities,  but  they  were  more  than 
counteracted  by  the  population  of  the  West,  and 
Clinton  received  about  two  thousand  votes  more 
than  his  opponent.  On  the  other  hand,  as  the  di 
vision  of  the  state  into  counties  and  senatorial  dis 
tricts  did  not  give  to  the  new  regions  of  the  West 


238  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

a  representation  proportioned  to  their  population, 
the  House  of  Assembly  mustered  a  majority  of  the 
friends  of  Tompkins,  by  whom  also  a  large  pro 
portion  of  the  vacancies  in  the  Senate  were  sup 
plied.  Clinton  therefore  entered  upon  his  new 
term  of  office  in  1819  along  with  a  hostile  Legis 
lature. 

We  have  stated  that  the  influence  of  the  ex 
ecutive  of  the  general  government  was  arrayed 
against  Clinton  in  this  election.  This  influence 
had  been  gradually  growing  for  several  years. 
At  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution,  the  minor  ap 
pointments  of  the  custom-house  had  been  chiefly 
given  to  officers  of  the  Revolutionary  army ;  and, 
although  by  far  the  greater  part  of  these  had 
joined  the  federal  party,  Jefferson  would  not  per 
mit  them  to  be  disturbed.  This  was  in  accordance; 
with  his  usual  policy,  not  to  remove  from  office 
without  cause;  and  the  mere  expression  of  prefer 
ence  by  a  silent  vote  he  did  not  admit  to  be  one. 
The  number  of  this  respectable  body  was  rapidly 
thinned  by  death,  while,  at  the  same  time,  the 
growing  commerce  of  New- York  demanded  that 
more  officers  should  be  appointed  than  wrould 
merely  fill  the  vacancies.  The  appointments  were 
generally  made  from  among  those  who  had  been 
the  most  active  at  elections  in  the  support  of  the 
democratic  party.  Gaining  their  offices  by  such 
means,  they  did  not  relax  their  electioneering  ef- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  239 

forts  after  appointment,  but  continued  to  figure  as 
leaders  of  the  party. 

Clinton  felt  himself  aggrieved  by  the  strength 
which  this  body  of  active  politicians  gave  to  the 
ranks  of  his  opponents. 

In  King's  county  the  election  had  been  decided 
against  him  by  the  workmen  of  the  navy-yard. 
These,  not  content  with  the  quiet  exercise  of  the 
elective  franchise,  had  proceeded  to  the  polls  in 
procession,  to  the  sound  of  military  music. 

Indignant  at  what  he  considered  an  unwarrant 
able  interference  in  the  state  elections,  Clinton 
could  riot  refrain  from  alluding  to  the  facts  in  his 
speech  to  the  Legislature.  This  body,  although 
the  fact  that  all  on  whom  the  government  could 
exert  influence  had  voted  against  him  was  notori 
ous,  affected  to  doubt  his  statement,  and  with  little 
courtesy  called  for  proofs.  It  was  trusted,  in  ma 
king  this  call,  that  the  links  by  which  the  acts  at 
the  polls  were  connected  with  the  government  at 
Washington  could  not  be  detected,  and  in  the  ev 
idence  he  adduced  a  part  of  them  was  wanting. 
He  however  proved,  in  more  than  one  instance, 
that  votes  were  given  under  the  influence  of  fear 
of  loss  of  office.  At  the  present  day,  the  fact  of 
direct  influence  exerted  by  the  executive  is  not 
doubted,  and  the  evil  has  become  such  that  a  law 
has  been  passed  by  Congress  to  prevent  the  offi- 

T 


240  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

cers  of  the  customs  from  being  assessed  for  the 
support  of  elections. 

Clinton,  who  could  not  read  the  secret  coun 
cils  of  his  enemies,  unluckily  chose  by  name  as 
an  active  agent  of  the  government  in  opposing 
him  one  who  was  his  sincere  friend,  and  had  la 
boured  most  strenuously  to  prevent  a  breach  be 
tween  the  president  and  the  governor  of  New- 
York,  but  who,  failing  in  the  attempt,  for  reasons 
very  different  from  personal  hostility,  was  found  in 
the  ranks  of  his  political  opponents.  The  mutual 
friends  of  the  parties  had,  however,  the  gratifica 
tion  to  see  that,  before  the  lapse  of  many  years, 
amicable  relations  were  restored  between  them. 

However  ably  and  completely  the  general  truth 
of  his  allegations  w^as  supported  by  Clinton,  the 
Legislature  treated  the  matter  as  a  party  question, 
and  the  only  opportunity  which  has  presented  it 
self  of  examining  how  far  the  general  govern 
ment  has  a  right  to  interfere  with  state  elections, 
was  lost.  It  would,  however,  appear  to  be  abso 
lutely  essential  to  the  consistency  of  the  principles 
of  a  free  government,  that  all  who  derive  emolu 
ment  either  from  the  state  or  general  government, 
by  an  office  held  during  pleasure,  should  be  ipso 
facto  disfranchised. 

The  violence  of  party  which  had  been  brought 
into  action  in  this  election,  so  far  from  subsiding 
after  its  result  was  known,  became  yet  greater. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  241 

An  array  of  talent,  such  as  has  rarely  been  enlisted 
in  any  political  struggle,  was  brought  into  action 
by  the  opponents  of  Clinton.     Serious  argument, 
satirical  poems,  and  newspaper  squibs  were  show 
ered  upon  his  policy,  his  person,  and  his  friends. 
His  scientific  pursuits,  in  particular,  became  the 
subject  of  ridicule.      He,  on  his   side,  defended 
himself  manfully ;  and  if  he  could  not  consistent 
ly  descend  to  encounter  the  wit  of  his  antagonists, 
he  met  and  often  foiled  them  in  serious  argument. 
These  contests  were  not  carried  on  without  ex 
citing  painful  feelings.     He  had  to  experience  the 
annoyance  of  seeing  men  whom  he  had  considered 
as  friends,  and  who  were  indebted  to  him  for  fa 
vours,  arrayed  against  him.     The  harmony  of  the 
canal  board  itself  was  broken  in  upon,  and  he  felt 
compelled  to  pour  a  torrent  of  indignant  eloquence 
upon  one  of  his  colleagues.     A  still  severer  trial 
awaited  him  in  a  public  conflict  with  a  soldier 
who  stood  most  deservedly  high  in  the  estimation 
of  his  countrymen  for  bravery  and  good  conduct. 
It  is  painful  to  reflect  that  two  such  men  should, 
by  the  force  of  party  violence,  have  been  brought 
into  a  position  of  such  deadly  hostility.     Clinton's 
letters  on  this  occasion  are  among  the  ablest  of 
his  productions,  and  are  master-pieces  of  the  art  of 
invective.     It  may  be  regretted  that  he  felt  it  ne 
cessary'  to  vindicate  himself  by  retorting  the  at 
tack  upon  him;  but  this  course  was  indispensable 


242  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

in  the  critical  state  of  his  political  prospects,  and 
was  successful  in  sustaining  his  personal  dignity 
and  that  of  his  office. 

The  result  of  the  election  had  shown  that  a 
very  decided  majority  of  the  citizens  of  the  state 
was  in  favour  of  the  canal  policy;  for  not  only 
was  every  vote  given  for  Clinton  that  of  a  friend 
to  the  enterprise,  but  there  were  among  the  adhe 
rents  of  Tompkins  some  who,  although  the  political 
opponents  of  Clinton,  were  yet  committed  to  the 
support  of  that  measure.  The  mode  of  attack 
was  therefore  adroitly  changed.  It  was  attempt 
ed  to  deprive  Clinton  of  all  merit  in  the  original 
design  of  the  canal,  and  all  claim  to  gratitude  for 
his  exertions  in  its  behalf.  He  was  accused  of 
having  appropriated  what  was  due  to  Morris ;  and 
when  the  true  state  of  their  relative  services  was 
known,  obscure  names,  of  which  the  people  had 
never  heard,  were  brought  forward  to  deprive  both 
of  the  honour.  It  is  remarkable,  that  in  this  dis 
cussion,  Platt,  who  had  been  the  first  to  propose 
action  on  the  part  of  the  state,  instead  of  com 
mitting  the  interests  to  an  incorporated  company, 
with  Geddes,  who  had  explored  the  Erie  route, 
arid  demonstrated  its  practicability,  were  not  even 
mentioned.  The  former  was  now  classed  with  the 
friends  of  Clinton ;  the  latter,  who  was  probably 
on  the  same  list,  would  have  disavowed  anything 
which  was  not  actually  his  due.  Neither,  there- 


D  E  W  IT  T     CLINTON.  243 

fore,  'were  suited  for  the  purpose  of  lessening  the 
merit  of  the  governor. 

During  these  discussions,  the  canal  commission 
ers  continued  their  exertions  strenuously.  The 
level  between  Utica  and  Syracuse  was  put  under 
contract  in  1817;  ground  was  broken  the  4th  of 
July  of  the  same  year,  and  this  central  portion  of 
the  canal  was  finished  in  1819. 

Clinton  retained,  with  his  office  of  governor,  his 
seat  as  president  of  the  board  of  canal  commis 
sioners,  and  devoted  all  his  leisure  from  the  duties 
of  the  former  to  the  business  of  the  latter.  This 
business  he  had  from  the  beginning  performed 
without  any  compensation,  although  by  usage  he 
might  have  been  fairly  entitled  to  it.  He  was 
also  placed  in  a  position  in  which  he  had  an 
opportunity  of  speculating  in  lands  likely  to  be 
benefited  by  the  location  of  the  canal,  and  it 
would  have  been  easy  to  find  associates  who 
would  have  purchased  in  their  own  names,  and 
paid  him  a  share  of  the  profits.  This  never  ap 
pears  to  have  been  even  suggested  to  his  mind  as 
a  temptation.  No  one  dared  to  approach  him 
with  such  proposals ;  and  any  idea  of  making  use 
to  his  own  emolument  of  the  advantages  of  his 
position  never  occurred  to  him.  This  course  was 
not  merely  creditable  to  him  as  exhibiting  his  own 
disinterestedness,  but  from  the  force  of  the  exam- 


244  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY 

pie  he  thus  set  to  his  colleagues,  and  all  the  en 
gineers  employed  upon  the  work. 

While  Clinton  acted  as  governor,  the  business 
of  legislation  fell,  of  course,  into  other  hands.  The 
governor  might  indeed  recommend  in  his  speeches 
and  messages  such  policy  as  he  approved,  but  the 
draught  of  laws  devolved  upon  committees  of  the 
two  houses.  Still,  measures  were  adopted  at  his 
'instance,  while  he  yet  was  supported  by  a  major 
ity  of  the  Legislature,  which  are  of  sufficient  im 
portance  to  be  mentioned,  but  others  of  no  less 
moment,  and  in  which  he  took  a  lively  interest, 
were  neglected. 

Jn  his  inaugural  speech  he  recommended,  the 
institution  of  Savings'  Banks  and  the  establishment 
of  a  Board  of  Agriculture.  These  recommenda 
tions  were  repeated  in  his  messages  to  the  Legis 
lature,  and  both  were  finally  adopted.  They  have 
each,  in  their  respective  sphere,  been  of  great  ben 
efit.  The  Savings'  Bank,  by  affording  an  oppor 
tunity  for  investing  small  amounts,  which  would 
otherwise  have  been  expended  on  useless  ob 
jects  or  committed  to  irresponsible  hands,  has  not 
only  increased  the  comfort  and  independence, 
but  raised  the  moral  character  of  the  labouring 
classes.  The  Board  of  Agriculture,  with  its 
branches  in  every  county,  has  excited  an  emula 
tion  among  the  farmers  wrhich  has  improved  their 
methods  of  cultivation,  and  has  spread  throughout 


DEWITT     CLINTON. 

the  state,  by  its  valuable  reports,  knowledge  of  the 
most  useful  character. 

He  also  recommended,  on  more  than  one  occa 
sion,  reforms  of  the  criminal  code  as  well  as  of 
the  civil  jurisprudence,  which  were  but  partially 

.a*-*****^^*. .-,?.  L  .  L  J 

acted  upon  by  the  Legislature. 

The  State  of  New-York  had  always  exported 
flour,  and  the  increase  of  agriculture  has  kept 
pace  with  that  of  population  in  such  manner  that 
a  surplus  production  of  wheat  has  been  main 
tained.  The  soil  and  climate  are  highly  favoura 
ble  to  its  culture ;  and,  as  experience  has  proved, 
there  was  no  reason  why  the  flour  of  NewT-York 
should  not  bear  as  high  a  character  as  that  of 
any  other  state.  At  the  time  Clinton  was  elected 
governor,  this  was  far  from  being  the  case.  Vir 
ginia  and  Pennsylvania  enjoyed  a  higher  reputa 
tion  in  this  respect,  and  their  merchants  and 
farmers  derived  higher  profits  in  consequence. 
Their  flour  sold  in  foreign  markets  from  one 
dollar  and  a  half  to  two  dollars  higher  than  that 
of  New-York.  Clinton  satisfied  himself  that  this 
was  not  owing  to  any  imperfection  in  the  raw 
material,  or  any  fault  of  the  manufacturer  pro 
ducing  an  average  inferiority,  but  to  a  careless 
inspection.  This,  by  permitting  low  qualities  to 
pass  with  the  highest  brand,  brought  the  whole 
crop  down  to  the  value  of  the  lowest  in  public 
estimation.  He  therefore,  in  1819,  proposed  an 


246  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY 

alteration  of  the  inspection  law,  which  did  not 
pass,  but  he  at  the  same  time  superseded  the  in 
spector.  The  consequence  of  this  movement  of 
Clinton  has  been  to  exalt  the  character  of  the 
brands  of  the  New-York  inspection,  until  they 
rank  higher  than  those  of  any  other  state. 

His  speeches  to  the  Legislature  were  replete 
with  sound  views  of  policy,  evincing  the  experi 
enced  and  patriotic  statesman ;  and  thus,  although 
intended  for  local  purposes  alone,  they  were 
sought  with  avidity  throughout  the  Union,  and 
were  awaited  with  greater  interest  than  the  con 
temporaneous  messages  of  the  President  of  the 
United  States. 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  247 


CHAPTER  XVIIL 

Objections  to  the  old  Constitution  of  the  State. — 
All  Parties  concur  in  a  desire  for  its  Amend 
ment. — Bill  calling  a  Convention  returned  by 
the  Council  of  Revision. — Clinton's  Opinions 
on  the  subject. — J3.  Law  is  passed  by  which  the 
call  of  a  Convention  is  submitted  to  a  popular 
vote. — Alterations  made  in  the  old  Constitution. 
— Clinton's  term  of  Office  is  abridged. — He  de- 
dines  to  be  a  Candidate  for  re-election. — Acci 
dent  to  his  leg. — His  first  Wife  dies. — He  visits 
the  States  of  Jersey  and  Ohio. — He  visits  Penn 
sylvania. — He  is  examined  before  a  Committee 
of  the  Legislature. — He  is  removed  from  his 
Office  of  Canal  Commissioner. — Public  Indig 
nation  in  Consequence. — Attempt  of  the  General 
Government  to  tax  Vessels  navigating  the  Ca- 
nalt — Clinton  is  nominated  by  the  Republican 
Convention  at  Utica,  and  again  elected  Gov 
ernor. — He  marries  his  second  Wife. 

THE  strength  of  Clinton's  opponents  in  the  Le 
gislature  placed  him,  in  a  short  time  after  his  sec 
ond  election,  in  the  same  position  to  which  he  had 
brought  Jay,  namely,  in  a  minority  of  the  counci] 
of  appointment  At  the  same  time,  moderate  mei\ 

U 


248  AMERICAN     Bl     UR     PHY. 

of  all  parties  wished  to  see  this  obnoxious  feature 
expunged  from  the  Constitution.  There  was  also 
a  strong  and  influential  body  that  desired  the 
equalization  of  the  elective  franchise,  which,  under 
the  old  Constitution,  was  confined  in  the  choice  of 
governor  and  senators  to  freeholders  alone.  There 
were  others  who  were  satisfied  of  the  inexpedien 
cy  of  that  feature  of  the  old  Constitution  which 
vacated  the  offices  of  chancellor  and  judges  when 
the  incumbents  reached  the  age  of  sixty  years. 
Finally,  it  was  believed  by  many,  that  the  fact  of 
the  judicial  officers  having  in  the  council  of  revis 
ion  a  veto  upon  the  laws  passed  by  the  Legisla 
ture,  exposed  them  to  the  risk  of  being  tempted, 
and  thus  impaired  public  confidence  in  the  purity 
of  the  bench.  All  classes  of  men  therefore  united 
in  a  desire  that  a  convention  should  be  called  to 
amend  the  Constitution. 

The  moderate  and  judicious  seem  to  have  de 
sired  that  the  council  of  appointment  should  be 
continued,  to  act  as  the  advisers  of  the  govern 
or,  not  as  his  co-equals  in  this  branch  of  execu 
tive  authority;  and  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  a 
similar  provision  in  relation  to  the  council  of  re 
vision  would  have  removed  the  objections  to  that 
body,  and  rendered  it  a  most  valuable  part  of  the 
government  Experience  seems  to  have  proved 
since  that  it  would  have  been  better  that  the  ex 
ecutive  should  have  had  a  right  to  resort  to  the 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  249 

opinion  of  the  united  wisdom  of  the  bench  on 
questions  of  constitutional  law,  rather  than  to  the 
advice  of  the  attorney-general,  who  can  rarely  be 
independent  of  a  party  bias.  That  judges  should 
retire  from  office  at  an  age  when,  if  activity  of 
body  begins  to  decay,  the  mind  is  at  its  maturity, 
seems  to  be  contrary  to  all  natural  reason,  and  re 
verses  the  practice  of  all  countries. 

In  respect  to  the  elective  franchise  the  question 
is  more  difficult.  Two  opinions  have  been  main 
tained  with  almost  equal  force :  the  one  holds  that 
the  possession  of  at  least  a  moderate  property  is  a 
test  of  wisdom  and  intelligence  well  suited  to  be 
a  standard  of  the  qualifications  of  an  elector,  while 
the  ownership  of  the  soil  gives  him  a  personal  in 
terest  in  the  stability  of  government  and  national 
prosperity,  which  he  who  has  no  such  ties  can 
never  feel ;  nor,  as  it  was  maintained,  could  the 
vesting  of  power  exclusively  in  such  hands  ever 
degenerate  into  an  aristocracy,  so  long  as  the  equal 
division  of  property  among  all  the  children  of  the 
same  parents  was  maintained  both  by  law  and 
custom,  and  all  possibility  of  creating  entails  was 
prevented.  This  opinion  has  been  stigmatized  as 
aristocratic,  but  has  been  defended  as  the  true 
principle  of  freedom,  and  in  its  favour  the  exam 
ple  of  Rome  has  been  adduced,  which  retained  its 
republican  institutions  so  long;  as  the  comitia  cen- 

O 

turiata  constituted  the  sovereignty,  but  fell  first 


250  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

into  anarchy,  and  finally  into  a  military  despotism, 
as  soon  as  the  distinctions  arising  from  taxable 
property,  which  formed  the  basis  of  that  mode  of 
voting,  were  abolished. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  has  been  maintained,  that 
as  it  is  the  very  principle  of  American  liberty 
that  all  men  are  born  free  and  equal,  any  distinc 
tion  in  the  right  of  voting  is  in  opposition  to  it. 
Clinton,  who,  during  his  whole  political  course, 
placed  the  firmest  reliance  upon  the  virtue  and 
intelligence  of  the  people,  was  of  the  latter  opin 
ion,  although  it  does  not  appear  that  he  carried 
his  views  of  the  extension  of  the  franchise  to  the 
length  it  has  now  reached.  To  the  will  of  the 
public,  expressed  in  their  primary  assemblies,  he 
always  appealed  as  the  tribunal  of  last  resort  on 
political  questions;  and,  next  to  the  canal,  the  dar 
ling  object  of  his  later  years  was  to  bring  the 
choice  of  electors  of  president  immediately  to  the 
people. 

In  the  general  wish  that  the  Constitution  should 
be  amended,  Clinton  participated,  and  the  call  of 
a  convention  for  the  purpose  was  recommended  by 
him  in  his  message.  The  Legislature,  although 
in  opposition  to  him,  was  obedient  to  the  popular 
will,  and  a  law  directing  the  election  of  delegates 
to  a  convention  was  passed.  In  passing  this  law, 
the  Legislature  virtually  assumed  the  sovereign 
power  to  be  vested  in  it,  and  the  convention 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  251 

would  have  acted  under  an  authority  having  its 
source  in  the  Senate  and  House  of  Assembly.  In 
this  view  of  the  subject  Clinton  did  not  concur. 
He  conceived  that  the  sovereignty  resided  of 
right  in  the  people,  convened  in  their  primary 
assemblies.  When  the  bill,  as  passed  by  the  Le 
gislature,  came  before  the  council  of  revision,  he 
pointed  out  this  defect  in  its  principle,  and  by  his 
casting  vote  it  was  returned  to  the  Legislature. 
Here  it  was  recommitted,  and  a  new  law  framed, 
by  which  the  question  whether  a  convention  should 
be  called  was  submitted  to  a  direct  vote  at  the 
popular  elections. 

This  vote  was  in  the  affirmative  by  a  large  ma 
jority,  and  a  convention  was  in  consequence  chosen, 
which  assembled  at  Albany.  The  political  opponents 
of  Clinton  took  advantage  of  his  act  in  the  coun 
cil  of  revision  to  represent  him  as  opposed  to  all 
change ;  and  although,  to  all  appearance,  but  little 
party  spirit  was  manifested  in  the  election  of  dele 
gates,  it  was  adroitly  managed  in  such  manner 
that  but  few  of  his  immediate  friends  were  chosen. 

The  convention  numbered  a  great  many  per 
sons  who  had  been  distinguished  in  the  party  war 
fare  of  the  state,  and  several  who  had  held  impor 
tant  public  stations  during  the  prevalence  as  well 
of  the  federal,  as  of  the  democratic  party.  Be 
tween  these  it  was  supposed  that  a  broad  distinc 
tion  existed  in  relation  to  the  limit  of  the  right 


252  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

of  suffrage.  The  federal  party,  it  was  believed, 
held  the  doctrine  of  the  English  republicans,  and 
which  had  been  the  basis  of  the  arguments  by 
which  the  American  Revolution  was  justified ; 
namely,  that  taxation  and  representation  should 
be  coextensive.  It  was,  in  consequence,  expected 
that  the  members  of  the  convention  who  had  be 
longed  to  this  party  would  have  opposed  any  far 
ther  extension  of  the  right  of  suffrage  in  the  elec 
tion  of  members  of  Assembly,  and  been  reluctant 
to  do  away  with  the  freehold  qualification  in  the 
voters  for  governor  and  senators. 

The  democratic  party,  on  the  other  hand,  had 
secured  its  ascendency  by  avowed  obedience  to  the 
popular  wrill,  and  an  effort  on  its  part  to  deprive 
the  freeholders  of  their  peculiar  privileges  was  to 
have  been  expected. 

To  the  surprise  of  those  who  were  not  acquaint 
ed  with  the  secret  springs  of  action,  all  parties  ex 
hibited  an  anxiety  to  outbid  each  other  for  popu 
larity,  by  extending  the  right  of  voting  for  all 
offices  to  the  widest  possible  limit.  More  doubt 
and  hesitation  was  shown  at  first  by  the  old  repub 
licans  than  by  those  who  had  been  counted  as  fed 
eralists  ;  but  the  desire  of  appearing  on  the  popu 
lar  side  prevailed  with  all,  and  no  requisite  was 
demanded  in  any  voter  except  citizenship  and  res 
idence. 

The  security  of  the  institutions  of  the  State  of 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  253 

New-York,  and  of  the  life,  liberty,  and  property 
of  its  inhabitants,  must  henceforth  depend  on  the 
virtue  and  intelligence  of  a  majority  of  its  voters. 
It  is  not  to  be  disguised,  that  many  anxious  pa 
triots  entertain  forebodings  that  the  experiment  has 
been  extended  too  far,  and  may  not  be  successful. 
No  doubt  need  be  entertained  of  the  permanence 
of  the  mere  forms  of  republican  institutions,  but 
their  fears  point  to  a  diminution  in  the  sanctity  of 
property,  and  of  security  for  persons  who  may  be 
come  obnoxious  to  popular  displeasure  from  vio 
lence  unauthorized  by  law.  Such  gloomy  forebo 
dings  are,  however,  founded  on  a  belief  that  the 
new  classes  of  voters  are  ignorant  and  vicious; 
against  which  we  have  a  sure  remedy  in  the  uni 
versal  extension  and  beneficial  influence  of  the 
common  school  system. 

By  the  Constitution  framed  by  this  convention 
the  council  of  appointment  was  abolished,  the  right 
of  nomination  being  vested  in  the  governor,  and 
the  concurrence  of  the  Senate  was  rendered  ne 
cessary.  The  council  of  revision  was  also  abolish 
ed,  and  the  veto  vested  in  the  governor,  subject  to 
a  reversal  by  a  vote  of  two  thirds  of  the  members 
of  both  houses.  The  objectionable  feature  in  rela 
tion  to  the  judges  was  retained,  showing  how,  in 
such  instances,  party  spirit  and  feelings  of  individ 
ual  dislike  may  prevail  over  considerations  of  pub 
lic  good,  The  chancellor  and  judges  had  not 


254  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

joined  the  party  in  opposition  to  Clinton,  arid 
there  was  not  sufficient  manliness  to  point  them 
out  directly  by  allowing  their  offices  to  expire  on 
their  reaching  the  age  to  which  the  old  Constitu 
tion  had  limited  their  term,  and  ordaining  that 
their  successors  should  remain  on  the  bench  to  a 
more  advanced  period  of  life. 

The  convention  mustered  a  decided  majority  of 
the  opponents  of  Clinton.  In  spite  of  this,  the  ca 
nal  policy,  for  which  he  had  SQ  long  contend edr 
was  triumphant.  Clinton's  belief  in  the  correct 
ness  of  the  final  judgment  of  the  people  was  jus 
tified;  and  those  who  had  on  former  occasions  been 
the  opponents  of  the  canal,  were  now  compelled, 
by  public  opinion  or  by  their  own  convictions,  to 
support  its  policy.  The  canal  was  made  inaliena 
ble  by  any  act  of  the  Legislature;  and  the  fund, 
which  had  before  been  pledged  by  law,  was  now 
established  more  firmly  by  a  clause  in  the  Consti 
tution. 

The  new  Constitution,  by  changing  the  day  on 
which  the  legal  year  began  from  the  4th  of  July 
to  the  1st  of  January,  abridged  Clinton's  term  of 
office ;  and  it  was  believed  by  many  that  the  de 
sire  to  remove  him  had  been  the  real  object  of  this 
change. 

A  new  division  of  parties  had  arisen,  founded 
on  the  claims  of  different  individuals  to  the  presi 
dential  chair.  Mr.  Monroe  had  undertaken  to 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  255 

govern  without  reference  to  the  ancient  divisions 
of  party,  and  three  candidates  for  the  succession 
started  from  his  own  cabinet.  General  Jackson 
and  Mr.  Clay  were  also  named ;  and  there  were 
not  wanting  many  persons  in  other  states  who 
would  gladly  have  given  their  suffrages  for  Clin 
ton  himself.  In  the  State  of  New-York,  Messrs. 
Crawford  and  Adams  were  the  prominent  candi 
dates,  and  parties  were  formed  in  support  of  their 
respective  pretensions.  With  neither  of  these 
would  Clinton  connect  himself,  and  he  would  not 
appear  as  a  candidate  for  the  office  himself.  He 
therefore  resolved  not  to  be  a  candidate  for  the 
office  of  governor,  which  would  have  required  his 
uniting  himself  to  one  oi  these  parties,  or  coming 
forward  as  a  candidate  for  the  presidency. 

The  long  sway  of  a  party  opposed  to  him  in  the 
Legislature,  and  the  proscription  to  which  all  who 
avowed  themselves  his  friends  \vere  exposed,  had 
the  effect  of  terrifying  all  aspirants  for  political 
influence  or  lucrative  offices  from  his  side;  and  the 
artful  policy  of  his  enemies,  in  adopting  his  favour 
ite  measures,  had  left  him  without  the  power  of 
joining  issue  with  them  in  an  appeal  to  the  popu 
lar  voice.  Joseph  Yates  was  elected  in  his  stead, 
overcoming  a  feeble  opposition  on  the  part  of  Sol 
omon  Southwick. 

In  the  summer  of  1818,  Clinton  met  with  an  ac 
cident  which  caused  the  fracture  of  his  leg.  His 


256  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

recovery  was  slow  and  painful,  and  he  was  com 
pelled  for  some  time  to  use  crutches ;  nor  did  he 
ever  wholly  overcome  a  slight  lameness.  This  in 
jury  had  an  unfavourable  effect  upon  his  health, 
by  rendering  him  unable  any  longer  to  take  the 
exercises  to  which  he  had  been  accustomed,  and 
in  which  he  took  pleasure.  He  had  been  in  the 
habit  of  riding  much  on  horseback,  and  was  fond 
of  field  sports  ;  from  both  of  these  he  was  now 
debarred ;  and  to  this  change  in  his  habits,  from 
active  to  sedentary,  may  be  ascribed  the  gradual 
approach  of  that  disease,  which  carried  him  off  in 
the  zenith  of  his  faculties. 

This  accident  was  preceded  by  a  severe  afflic 
tion  in  his  family,  the  loss  of  his  wife,  who,  in 
the  language  of  his  diary,  "  retired  to  another  and 
better  world  with  characteristic  fortitude." 

The  retirement  of  Clinton  from  office  did  not 
cause  him  to  cease  from  his  exertions  for  the  pub 
lic  good,  but  rather  extended  the  sphere  of  his 
beneficial  action.  If,  in  his  native  state,  there 
were  those  who  doubted  the  importance  of  his 
agency  in  creating  the  canal  policy,  and  others 
who,  with  better  knowledge,  denied  him  due  hon 
our,  he  was,  in  other  parts  of  the  Union,  fully  ap 
preciated  ;  and  those  who,  with  just  views  of  duty, 
sought  to  extend  to  their  own  states  the  benefits 
of  the  policy  so  successful  in  New-York,  appealed 
to  his  powerful  aid. 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  257 

In  the  State  of  New-Jersey  an  old  project  had 
been  revived  for  the  construction  of  the  Raritan 
and  Delaware  Canal.     The  great  importance  of 
this  measure.,  in  a  national  point  of  view,  had  been 
developed  in  the  report  of  Mr.  Gallatin.     At  the 
same  time,  a  novel  and  almost  unexampled  plan 
of  a  canal  across  the  great  Atlantic  ridge  from  the 
Passaic  to  the  Delaware  had  been  brought  for 
ward.     The  friends  of  the  latter  measure  request 
ed  Clinton  to  visit  the  region  and  inquire  into  its 
practicability.     Having  satisfied  himself  that  the 
means  proposed  were  feasible,  he  drew  up  a  re 
port  on  the  subject,  urging  that  this  canal  should 
be  constructed  by  the  state.     Some  weeks  after, 
on  the  invitation  of  the  state  authorities,  he  visited 
Trenton.     Here  he  not  only  enforced  by  persona', 
communication  the  opinion  he  had  already  given, 
but  exhorted  the  two  rival  sections  of  the  state  to 
union,  and  pointed  out  the  advantages  of  making 
both  canals  at  the  expense  of  the  state.     In  this 
instance  his  enlightened  views  did  not  prevail. 
The  Legislature  shrunk  from  the  responsibility  of 
undertaking  both  canals,  and  the  partisans  of  each 
were  too  powerful  to  allow  of  the  adoption  of  the 
other  as  a  state  work.     Subsequently,  the  two  en 
terprises  have  been  each  intrusted  to  a  chartered 
company,  and  the  result  of  their  operations  has 
justified  the  prescience  of  Clinton.     Enough  has 
been  done  to  show  that,  had  the  state  executed 


258  AMERICAN   BIOGRAPHY. 

them,  both  must  have  been  profitable;  while  to  the 
companies  which  have  held  them,  from  causes  in 
separably  connected  with  the  management  of 
chartered  companies,  they  have  yielded  no  profit. 
The  Delaware  and  Raritan  Canal  has  imposed 
tolls  so  high  as  to  exclude  all  transit  of  heavy 
commodities,  while  the  Morris  Canal  has,  by  a 
departure  from  its  original  plan,  and  deviations 
from  the  system  on  which  Clinton's  opinion  of  its 
feasibility  was  founded,  become  so  costly,  that  a 
trade  as  large  as  was  anticipated  does  not  pay  an 
adequate  dividend.  The  Legislature,  too,  in  order 
to  encourage  capitalists  to  embark  in  this  project, 
endowed  the  Morris  Canal  Company  with  banking 
privileges,  and  these  have  been  so  badly  managed 
as  almost  to  involve  it  in  ruin. 

He  was  also  invited  to  visit  Ohio.  Here  his 
views  of  policy  prevailed.  That  state,  after  de 
liberate  inquiry  into  the  practicability  of  a  canal 
from  Lake  Erie  to  the  River  Ohio,  undertook  its 
construction ;  and  to  Clinton  the  high  compliment 
was  assigned,  although  in  no  official  capacity,  and 
in  the  presence  of  the  governor  of  the  state,  of 
removing  the  first  earth  of  the  excavation.  His 
journey  through  Ohio  was  one  continued  triumph, 
and  resembled  more  the  progress  of  Lafayette 
than  the  travel  of  any  native  citizen  of  however 
exalted  rank  or  extended  popularity. 

In  the  summer  of  1824,  Clinton,  by  invitation, 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  259 

visited  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  for  the  purpose 
of  giving  the  aid  of  his  high  authority  in  the  fur 
therance  of  the  system  of  internal  improvements 
projected  in  that  state.  A  want  of  enterprise  and 
exertion  had  hitherto  characterized  its  Legislature, 
and  it  had  intrusted  to  private  companies  some 
of  the  most  important  lines  of  communication 
within  its  limits.  In  its  subsequent  awakening  to 
a  sense  of  the  importance  of  taking  the  public 
works  into  the  hands  of  the  state,  a  desire  to  meet 
the  views  of  every  interest  has  caused  the  expan 
sion  of  the  operations  over  too  great  a  space. 
Partial  efforts  have  been  made  in  many  places, 
and  on  these  an  amount  of  money  has  been  ex 
pended,  which,  if  applied  to  any  single  object, 
must  have  yielded  adequate  returns.  These  im 
provements  do  not  even  pay  the  interest  on  their 
cost;  and,  by  a  want  of  foresight,  no  adequate 
funds  were  provided  in  advance  to  meet  such  an 
emergency.  The  example  of  this  great  and  opu 
lent  state,  which  is  at  present  paralyzed  in  its  ex 
ertions  for  the  want  of  wise  and  decided  measures, 
may  serve  to  show  of  how  great  importance  it  was 
to  the  State  of  New -York  that  there  was  in  it  one 
person  possessing  sufficient  weight  and  influence 
to  direct  its  energies  in  a  more  skilful  manner. 

Clinton  seemed  born  to  illustrate  in  his  own 
person  the  fickle  character  of  attachments  found 
ed  on  political  considerations.  Up  to  the  year 


260  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

1812  he  had  been  the  idol  of  the  democratic 
party  in  the  State  of  New- York,  and  had  been 
their  almost  unanimous  nominee  for  the  office  of 
president  of  the  United  States;  but  when  the  in 
fluence  of  the  general  government  was  exerted 
against  him,  all  the  leading  politicians,  with  rare 
exceptions,  abandoned  him.  Nor  were  they  con 
tent  with  this,  but  commenced  attacks  upon  him 
until  he  was  removed  from  the  mayoralty.  His 
subsequent  elevation  to  the  office  of  governor  was 
a  spontaneous  act  of  the  people,  in  which  politi 
cians  by  profession  had  little  to  do ;  but  he  was  at 
once  surrounded  by  those  who  had  persecuted  him 
in  his  adverse  fortunes.  The  close  of  his  second 
term  as  governor  was  attended  by  a  similar  deser 
tion  of  political  men  ;  and  in  the  Legislature  which 
first  met  under  the  new  Constitution,  hardly  a  man 
was  to  be  found  bold  enough  to  avow  himself  the 
adherent  of  his  fortunes. 

In  the  succeeding  Legislature  the  case  was  still 
stronger,  and  to  coldness  was  added  direct  injury. 
He  was,  in  the  first  place,  called  before  a  commit 
tee  of  the  Legislature  to  be  examined  on  the  sub 
ject  of  the  canals.  The  examination,  it  is  said, 
was  not  conducted  with  any  of  the  courtesy  to 
which  the  rank  he  had  recently  held  in  the  state 
would  have  seemed  to  entitle  him.  It  would  ap 
pear  to  have  been  intended  to  afford  grounds  for 
the  justification  of  an  act  which  the  leaders  of  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  261 

dominant  party  had  resolved  upon,  but  they  fail 
ed  in  finding  any.  The  act,  however,  was  not, 
for  that  reason,  left  undone.  On  the  last  day  of 
the  session  of  1824,  a  resolution  was  introduced 
into  the  Senate  removing  Clinton  from  his  office  as 
canal  commissioner.  This  resolution  was  carried 
without  debate,  and  with  but  three  dissenting  voi 
ces.  In  the  House  it  prevailed  by  a  vote  of  more 
than  two  thirds  of  the  members ;  no  speech  was 
made  in  justification  or  explanation  of  it,  and  the 
only  opposition  in  words  was  an  eloquent  and  in 
dignant  speech,  made  on  the  spur  of  the  occasion 
by  Cunningham,  of  Montgomery  county,  a  man 
whose  honesty  of  purpose,  independence  of  char 
acter,  and  promising  talent  were  prematurely  lost 
to  the  state. 

At  the  time  of  this  vote  Clinton  had  been  for 
fourteen  years  steadily  engaged  in  promoting  the 
cause  of  the  internal  navigation  of  the  state,  and, 
whether  in  or  out  of  office,  had  received  no  com 
pensation  for  these  services.  It  seems  to  have 
been  believed  by  the  leaders  in  this  unmerited 
insult,  that  Clinton  had  entirely  lost  all  his  popu 
larity,  and  that  it  was  only  necessary  to  deprive 
him  of  the  little  influence  which  the  office  of  ca 
nal  commissioner  gave  him,  in  order  to  close  his 
political  career  for  ever.  In  both  views  of  the 
subject  they  were  mistaken.  Clinton,  although 
to  appearance  abandoned  by  all  his  mere  political 


262  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY 

partisans,  had  lost  none  of  his  well-earned  popu 
larity  with  the  people  at  large,  and  this  act  of  the 
Legislature  served  to  call  this  popularity  into  ac 
tion.  The  news  of  his  removal  had  no  sooner 
reached  the  principal  towns  in  the  state,  than 
meetings  were  called  to  express  the  popular  in 
dignation  at  the  removal  of  Clinton  from  the  office 
he  had  so  long  and  so  worthily  held.  In  the  City 
of  New-York,  not  less  than  ten  thousand  persons 
assembled  at  the  call;  and  the  proportionate  num 
bers  were  much  greater  in  other  places,  for  the 
city  still  continued  to  be  the  seat  of  his  most  ac 
tive  opponents.  Many  of  these,  however,  united 
in  the  proceedings,  and  the  chairman  of  the  city 
meeting  was  Colonel  Few,  who  had  long  been  op 
posed  to  him  in  politics. 

The  term  of  office  of  Governor  Yates  was  about 
to  expire,  and  a  convention  was  assembled  to  nom 
inate  a  candidate  for  the  succession.  At  this  con 
vention,  Clinton,  much  to  the  surprise  of  those 
who  had  considered  him  as  completely  fallen,  was 
a'.;  once  proposed  as  a  fit  person  to  be  selected. 
A  discussion  arose,  wrhich  ended  in  the  retirement 
of  the  delegation  of  the  City  of  New-York  and  a 
few  others,  amounting  in  all  to  twenty  members. 
After  the  secession  of  this  party,  the  nomination 
of  Clinton  was  concurred  in  with  absolute  una 
nimity. 

The  overwhelming  influence  which  was  brought 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  263 

to  bear  upon  this  convention  by  the  popular  voice, 
arose  in  a  great  degree  from  a  correct  appreciation 
of  the  value  of  his  services  in  securing  the  con 
struction  of  the  canal  and  the  triumph  of  the  pol 
icy  of  internal  improvement.  It  was  also  aided 
by  the  strong  interest  which  Clinton  took  in  the 
question  of  the  manner  of  choosing  the  electors  of 
president.  This  had  been  hitherto  done  by  the 
Legislature ;  and  a  strong  effort,  in  which  Clinton 
aided,  was  now  making  to  give  the  choice  direct 
ly  to  the  people.  Those  politicians  who,  with  the 
loudest  professions  of  obedience  to  the  popular 
will,  held  the  power  in  their  hands  through  a  ma 
jority  of  the  Legislature,  were  averse  to  parting 
with  it,  and  the  contrast  between  their  professions 
and  acts  had  no  little  effect  in  restoring  the  influ 
ence  of  Clinton. 

An  important  question  had  also  arisen  in  respect 
to  the  navigation  of  the  canal.  Its  size  was  such 
that  the  vessels  which  navigate  it  fall  within  the 
description  of  those  required  to  receive  licenses 
from  the  custom-houses  of  the  general  govern 
ment.  Although  the  administration  was  in  the 
hands  of  those  professing  an  exclusive  attachment 
to  state  rights,  an  attempt  was  made  to  extend  the 
authority  of  the  officers  of  the  customs  over  the 
vessels  navigating  the  canal.  As  the  canal  lies 
wholly  within  the  limits  of  a  single  state,  this 
attempt  could  not  be  justified  upon  the  grant  of 

X 


264  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

powers  to  regulate  either  foreign  commerce  or  that 
between  the  states.  To  have  brought  this  plan 
into  operation  would  have  been  a  gross  and  un 
warrantable  usurpation,  and  as  such  it  was  con 
sidered  by  all  those  who  had  a  proper  feeling  of 
the  rights  of  their  native  state.  There  was,  how 
ever,  a  moment  wrhen  it  appeared  probable  that 
the  attempt  to  enforce  this  measure  would  be  suc 
cessful.  It  therefore  became  necessary  to  unite 
all  the  strength  which  could  be  collected  in  op 
position  to  it.  It  was  seen  and  felt  that  Clinton 
was  the  leader  under  whose  direction  this  opposi 
tion  might  be  most  efficiently  brought  into  action, 
and  that  in  the  office  of  governor  alone  he  would 
have  the  power  necessary  to  counteract  the  con 
templated  usurpation. 

The  party  which  had  withdrawn  from  the  con 
vention  did  not  submit  quietly  to  its  decisions,  but 
nominated  Colonel  Young,  the  former  colleague 
of  Clinton  in  the  canal  board,  as  a  candidate  in 
opposition  to  him.  His  nomination,  however,  met 
with  a  signal  defeat,  and  Clinton  was  elected  gov 
ernor  by  a  majority  over  his  opponent  of  upward 
of  sixteen  thousand  votes. 

We  have  in  this  place  to  speak  of  Clinton's 
second  marriage,  which  occurred  before  the  close 
of  his  second  term  of  service  as  governor.  The 
lady  whom  he  chose  was  Miss  Catharine  Jones, 
the  daughter  of  Dr.  Thomas  Jones,  an  eminent 


DEW  ITT     CLINTON.  265 

physician  in  the  City  of  New-York.  It  would  ap 
pear,  from  passages  and  extracts  in  his  common 
place  book,  that  the  propriety  of  contracting  a 
second  marriage  had  been  a  subject  of  serious  re 
flection,  and  that  his  judgment  was  fully  satisfied 
that  the  step  was  an  expedient  one.  Of  this  esti 
mable  lady,  who  still  survives,  feelings  of  delicacy 
will  prevent  us  from  saying  more 


266  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

Success  of  the  Canal  Policy.  —  Silver  Vases  are 
presented  to  Clinton  by  the  Merchants  of  New- 
York. — He  is  invited  by  Mr.  Jldams  to  serve  as 
Minister  to  Great  Britain,  and  declines. — Great 
Celebration  of  the  opening  of  the  Canal. — New 
and  important  Public  Works  recommended  by 
Clinton. — His  plan  of  a  Board  of  Public  Works. 
— JJntimasonic  Excitement. — Coalition  to  defeat 
Clinton's  election  as  Governor. — He  is}  notwith 
standing,  re-elected. 

IN  conformity  with  the  election  of  which  we  have 
spoken,  Clinton  resumed  his  seat  as  Governor  of 
the  State  of  New-York  in  January,  1825.  He 
now  had  it  in  his  power  to  communicate  officially 
the  triumph  of  the  system  of  which  he  had  so  long 
been  an  advocate.  Little  more  than  seven  years 
had  elapsed  since  the  first  earth  was  removed  from 
the  bed  of  the  canal,  and  it  was  now  approaching 
to  completion.  In  the  summer  of  1823  boats  had 
passed  into  the  Hudson,  and  the  navigation  was 
open  thence  to  within  a  short  distance  of  Buffalo. 
The  revenues  of  the  canal  fund  had  derived  the 
increase  he  had  anticipated  from  the  very  action 
of  the  canal  itself.  The  two  principal  items  were 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  267 

the  salt  duties  and  those  on  auction  sales.  The 
facilities  afforded  to  the  transport  of  salt  had  en 
larged  the  sphere  of  its  consumption,  and  thus 
the  quantity  manufactured  had  been  increased. 
Wealth  had  been  diffused  along  the  line  of  the 
canal,  calling  for  new  articles  of  luxury  and  util 
ity,  while  the  abundance  of  the  products  of  which 
the  City  of  New- York  became  the  market  and  the 
place  of  export,  was  rapidly  rendering  it  the  cen 
tral  point  of  the  import  trade  of  the  Union.  The 
sales  at  auction  were  multiplied  from  all  these 
causes,  and  a  larger  revenue  accrued.  The  canal 
itself,  although  not  completed,  nor  in  the  reception 
of  the  trade  of  the  Western  Lakes,  already  yielded 
tolls  of  an  unexpected  amount.  It  happened  from 
all  these  causes  that  Clinton  had  the  satisfaction 
to  announce,  in  his  first  message  to  the  Legislature, 
that  the  income  of  the  canal  fund,  when  added  to 
the  tolls,  exceeded  the  interest  on  the  cost  of  the 
canal  by  nearly  four  hundred  thousand  dollars. 

A  degree  of  prosperity  unexampled,  and  hard 
ly  anticipated  by  the  most  sanguine,  prevailed 
throughout  the  state.  The  City  of  New-York^ 
which  in  1818  had  witnessed  a  decrease  in  its 
population,  and  a  prodigious  fall  in  the  value  of 
property,  had  now  recovered  its  prosperity,  and 
was  increasing  in  population  and  wealth  in  a  ratio 
higher  than  at  any  former  period.  The  counties 
on  the  banks  of  the  Hudson,  and  those  on  Long 


268  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

Island,  which  had  feared  a  decay  in  their  agricul 
ture  in  consequence  of  the  admission  of  rivals 
from  the  West  in  the  supply  of  the  city,  saw  these 
gloomy  anticipations  contradicted  by  experience 
The  western  parts  of  the  state  had  been  in  a  man 
ner  created  by  the  operation  of  the  canal.  The 
regions  whence  the  transport  of  the  produce  to  the 
Hudson  had  been  equal  to  its  whole  value  in  Al 
bany,  were  now  placed  almost  on  equality  with 
those  upon  the  Hudson.  Land  to  the  west  of  the 
Seneca  Lake  was  enhanced  in  value  fourfold,  and5 
that  less  remote,  if  not  benefited  in  as  high  a  ratio, 
derived  advantages  corresponding  to  its  distance. 

The  mercantile  interest  in  the  city,  enjoying  a 
degree  of  prosperity  such  as  the  most  sanguine 
anticipations  had  never  contemplated,  considered' 
Clinton  as  the  prominent  cause  of  the  vast  increase 
of  trade  which  the  canal  had  opened.  It  was 
therefore  resolved  to  take  measures  for  the  pur 
pose  of  signifying  to  him  the  high  opinion  which 
was  entertained  by  the  merchants  of  his  public 
services.  With  this  intention  a  meeting  was  call 
ed,  at  which  it  was  determined  that  a  subscription 
should  be  raised  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  ar 
ticles  of  plate,  to  be  presented  to  Clinton  as  an 
evidence  of  their  gratitude,  and  to  serve  as  a  dura 
ble  memorial  of  the  benefits  conferred  by  him 
upon  the  City  and  the  State  of  New- York. 

The  subscription  was  speedily  filled  up ;  and,  IT* 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  269 

conformity  with  the  intentions  of  the  meeting,  two 
large  and  rich  silver  vases  were  procured,  arid  for 
mally  presented  to  Clinton  by  a  committee  on  be 
half  of  the  merchants.  Valuable  as  was  the  ma 
terial  of  this  present ;  much  as  the  workmanship, 
remarkable  for  beauty  of  design  and  elaborate  ex 
ecution,  exceeded  the  material  in  cost,  the  gift 
owed  its  real  value  to  the  fact  of  its  being  the 
symbol  of  the  unanimous  approbation  of  the  most 
intelligent,  enterprising,  and  public-spirited  body 
of  citizens  which  could  have  been  collected  for 
any  object  whatever.  The  merchants  of  New- 
York  belong  to  all  political  parties ;  are  connect 
ed  with  every  diversity  of  religious  sect ;  they  are5 
besides,  divided  by  variety  of  interests  and  occu 
pations,  and  are  actuated  by  strong  feelings  of 
rivalry.  On  no  other  occasion  have  they  ever 
been  united  in  an  unanimous  expression  of  opin 
ion  ;  and  the  proverbial  acuteness  with  which  they 
discern  matters  effecting  their  pecuniary  interests, 
renders  this  spontaneous  tribute  to  the  merits  and 
services  of  Clinton  a  compliment  such  as  has  been 
paid  to  no  other  American  statesman. 

After  his  death,  these  vases,  under  the  law  of 
the  equal  distribution  of  inheritances,  were,  in  the 
absence  of  a  will,  necessarily  sold.  At  the  sale 
they  were  purchased  by  a  new  subscription,  and 
presented  to  his  oldest  surviving  son.  It  is  in 
instances  of  this  sort  that  the  law  abolishing  all 


270  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

entailment  seems  hard  and  impolitic.  It  might  have 
gratified  the  donors  to  know  that  the  gift  would 
never  be  alienated  from  the  family  of  Clinton,  and 
the  gift  would  have  been  enhanced  in  value  to  him. 
Clinton  had,  as  we  have  seen,  avoided  enga 
ging  himself  with  the  adherents  of  either  of  the 
candidates  for  the  presidency  in  the  place  of  Mr. 
Monroe.  The  most  prominent  of  these  had  been 
members  of  the  cabinet  of  that  gentleman,  and  the 
decided  opposition  which  he  had  shown  to  Clin 
ton's  interests  in  New- York  must  have  prevented 
him  from  having  any  very  friendly  feeling  towards 
them.  On  the  withdrawal  of  Mr.  Crawford,  the 
party  which  had  supported  him  turned  their  views 
towards  General  Jackson.  To  him  alone  of  all 
the  candidates  could  Clinton  have  any  personal 
liking.  The  friends  of  Crawford  had  been  the 
agents  in  his  removal  from  the  office  of  canal  com 
missioner,  while  the  very  men  who  had  been  most 
influential  in  obtaining  for  Adams  the  electoral 
vote  of  New-York  were  those  who  had  seceded 
from  the  convention  by  which  Clinton  was  nom 
inated  for  governor.  Jackson,  on  the  other  hand, 
had  rebuked,  in  the  very  seat  of  the  power  of  the 
personal  opponents  of  Clinton,  the  ingratitude  of 
the  state  towards  its  most  useful  and  distinguished 
citizen.  Still  it  was  impossible  that  Clinton  could 
act  with  the  party  which,  on  the  withdrawal  of 
Crawford,  transferred  their  support  to  Jackson. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  271 

Hence,  at  his  election  as  governor,  he  was  free 
from  all  connexion  with  the  friends  of  either  of 
the  candidates  for  the  presidency. 

The  vote  of  the  electoral  colleges  was  n-ot  de 
cisive  ;  the  choice  of  president  therefore  devolved 
upon  the  House  of  Representatives,  and  Mr.  Ad 
ams  was  elected.  This  gentleman  was  no  sooner 
made  aware  of  his  success,  than  he  determined  to 
offer  to  Clinton  the  appointment  of  minister  to 
England.  The  offer  was  accordingly  made,  but 
was,  without  hesitation,  declined  by  the  latter.  In 
his  refusal,  Clinton  assigns  as  the  principal  reason, 
the  obligation  he  was  under  to  the  citizens  of  his 
native  state,  who  had  so  recently  and  by  so  large 
a  majority  elected  him  to  the  chief  magistracy 
There  is  no  need  of  searching  for  other  motives, 
nor  is  it  probable  that  any  other  influenced  him  at 
the  moment.  It  is  obvious,  however,  that  Clinton 
would  have  been  brought,  by  the  acceptance  of 
the  office,  into  political  communion  with  many 
who  had  been  his  opponents  from  personal  enmi 
ty  as  well  as  upon  political  grounds.  A  few 
months'  experience  satisfied  him  in  confirmation  of 
the  correctness  of  his  decision,  that  Mr.  Adams 
could  not  hope  for  a  re-election,  and  that  all  who 
had  become  connected  with  him  must  share  in  his 
downfall. 

The  office  of  Governor  of  the  State  of  New- 
York  held  out  to  Clinton,  at  the  moment,  i 


272  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

ments  for  continuance  in  it  which  no  temptation 
in  any  other  direction  could  probably  have  over 
come.  The  canal,  to  which  so  much  of  his  atten 
tion  had  been  devoted,  and  in  which  he  had  taken 
so  lively  an  interest,  was  approaching  its  comple 
tion  ;  and  to  preside  as  chief  magistrate  at  the  cel 
ebration  of  the  entire  opening  of  that  work,  into 
which  he,  as  senior  commissioner,  had  put  the  first 
spade,  was  a  triumph  such  as  few  men  have  been 
able  to  enjoy.  As  this  great  undertaking  ap 
proached  its  conclusion,  preparations  were  made 
along  its  whole  extent  for  public  rejoicings ;  nor 
were  such  preparations  confined  to  the  banks  of 
the  canal,  but  extended  to  the  shores  of  the  Hud 
son  and  the  City  of  New-York.  The  water  of 
Lake  Erie  was  admitted  into  the  canal  on  the 
26th  October,  1826,  and  the  interesting  fact  was 
announced  by  signal  cannon,  which  conveyed  the 
joyful  tidings  in  a  few  minutes  to  the  beach  of 
the  ocean.  Immediately  thereafter,  a  flotilla  set 
out  from  the  harbour  of  Buffalo,  conveying  the 
governor,  the  canal  commissioners,  and  numerous 
distinguished  persons,  and  bearing  the  symbolic 
representation  of  the  lake  to  be  wedded  to  the 
deity  of  the  ocean.  At  Albany  the  flotilla  was 
increased  by  an  escort  of  steamboats,  and,  on  en 
tering  the  bounds  of  the  City  of  New-York,  the 
corporation  and  public  authorities  joined  in  the 
aquatic  procession  by  which  the  water  of  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  273 

lake  was  borne  to  be  mingled  with  the  tide  of  the 
sea. 

Our  country  has  never  witnessed  any  ceremony 
accompanied  by  such  pomp,  nor  one  which  dif 
fused  in  every  breast  such  unmingled  feelings  of 
gratification.  All  feelings  of  party  spirit  were 
suspended,  and  even  the  bitterness  of  personal 
animosity  was  for  a  monent  neutralized.  Clinton 
was  received  at  every  place  as  the  chief  instru 
ment  of  the  blessings  which  had  already  been  ex 
perienced,  but  which  all  felt  to  be  the  mere  prel 
ude  of  what  were  to  follow ;  and,  while  thousands 
had  aided  in  promoting  the  great  design,  no  whis 
per  was  heard  to  indicate  that  he  had  any  rival  in 
the  magnitude  of  his  exertions  or  the  amount  of 
his  services. 

A  mind  of  ordinary  character  might  have  been 
content  with  the  glory  thus  acquired ;  one  who 
had  attained  such  a  height  of  reputation  without 
deserving  it,  might  have  feared  to  venture  it  by 
proposing  new  measures  of  the  same  description ; 
while  devotion  to  the  cause  of  the  Erie  Canal 
might  have  had  the  effect  of  rendering  even  clear 
sighted  persons  blind  to  the  value  of  other  plans 
of  internal  improvement.  Clinton  was  influenced 
by  no  such  feelings.  Even  before  the  canal  was 
completed,  and  in  the  very  act  of  seating  himself 
in  the  gubernatorial  chair,  he  pointed  out  to  the 
Legislature  new  channels  of  internal  comrnunica- 


274  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

tion,  as  likely  to  be  new  sources  of  wealth  to  the 
state. 

The  counties  which  lie  on  the  right  bank  of  the 
St.  Lawrence  are  naturally  rich  and  fertile,  but, 
in  consequence  of  the  difficulty  of  communication, 
land  situated  in  them  has  rather  fallen  than  risen  in 
value  since  the  internal  improvements  of  the  state 
were  begun,  and  the  population  has  shown  a  dis 
position  to  remove  to  more  accessible  regions.  A 
part  of  this  country  might  be  brought  into  com 
munication  with  the  Erie  Canal  by  means  of  a 
canal  from  the  valley  of  the  Black  River  to  that 
of  the  Mohawk.  This,  however,  would  be  costly, 
in  consequence  of  the  height  of  the  summit  level, 
unless  some  cheaper  mode  than  that  of  locks  could 
be  introduced  for  overcoming  it.  The  mountains 
which  occupy  so  great  a  portion  of  the  north  of 
the  state,  fall  away  about  the  45th  degree  of  lat 
itude,  and  it  is  obvious  that  a  canal  from  the  St. 
Lawrence  to  Lake  Champlain  is  practicable.  This 
would  open  the  whole  of  this  region,  and  render  it 
accessible  to  commerce.  Clinton  recommended 
this  line  of  communication  to  the  notice  of  the  Le 
gislature;  and,  as  the  best  route  would  enter  partly 
into  the  British  territory,  suggests  the  propriety  of 
endeavouring  to  obtain  permission  to  make  the 
canal  from  the  government  of  Great  Britain,  or  of 
negotiating  an  exchange  for  territory  in  some  oth 
er  region.  Nothing  has  been  done  towards  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON,  275 

promotion  of  this  project,  and  it  will  rest  among 
those  instances  in  which  local  interests  have  tri 
umphed  over  the  public  good. 

It  had  been  among  the  points  of  policy  which 
Clinton  had  most  strenuously  supported,  that  the 
communication  with  Lake  Ontario  should  be  avoid 
ed.  When,  however,  the  completion  of  the  direct 
route  to  Lake  Erie  was  assured,  an  important  re 
gion  on  that  lake  seemed  to  demand  a  communica 
tion  with  the  great  canal.  Clinton  entered  warm 
ly  into  the  support  of  this  project,  and  made  it  the 
subject  of  a  recommendation  to  the  Legislature. 

It  has  been  seen  that  an  imperfect  navigation, 
interrupted  by  portages,  had  connected  the  Cayu- 
ga  and  Seneca  Lakes  with  the  Mohawk,  but  from 
the  Erie  Canal  no  communication  to  those  lakes 
had  been  provided.  Canandaigua  Lake,  which 
had  been  before  reached  by  no  navigation,  al 
though  of  less  extent,  lies  also  in  the  heart  of  a 
rich  country.  The  connexion  of  these  three  lakes 
with  the  Erie  Canal,  appeared  to  Clinton  to  be  an 
object  of  great  importance,  and  the  consideration 
of  this  subject  was,  in  consequence,  urged  upon 
the  Legislature. 

Crooked  Lake  empties  its  waters  into  the  Sene 
ca  Lake,  and  from  the  head  of  the  former  a  long 
portage  had  afforded  access  to  the  Tioga  or  Che- 
mung  Branch  of  the  Susquehanna.  It  appeared 
that  a  canal  was  practicable  in  this  direction,  and 


276  AMEEICAN    BIOGRAPHY 

this  seemed  to  Clinton  of  sufficient  importance  to 
be  made  one  of  the  subjects  of  his  first  message 
to  the  Legislature. 

Of  these  projected  canals,  those  which  join  the 
Seneca  and  Cayuga  Lakes  to  the  Erie  Canal  have 
been  constructed,  in  conformity  with  Clinton's  rec 
ommendations,  as  has  that  from  the  Seneca  Lake 
to  the  Chemung.  Those  who  have  entertained 
less  liberal  views  of  the  policy  of  the  state  in  re 
spect  to  internal  improvements,  have  not  failed  to 
remark,  that  the  tolls  on  these  canals  have  not 
met  the  interest  on  their  cost.  It  seems,  however, 
to  have  been  demonstrated,  that  the  state  is  no 
loser ;  for,  although  the  receipts  collected  on  the 
lines  of  these  canals  fall  short  of  this  object,  it  is 
to  be  considered  that,  if  they  be  added  to  the  tolls 
accruing  to  the  Erie  Canal  from  vessels  which  en 
ter  it  from  these  lateral  navigations,  the  sum  will 
be  more  than  sufficient  to  meet  the  interest  on  the 
cost  of  these  public  works.  Even  did  they  not 
suffice  for  this  purpose,  an  amount  of  wealth  has 
been  created  by  these  canals  which  far  exceeds 
their  whole  cost. 

Besides  these  subjects  of  general  interest,  Clin 
ton  did  not  refuse  to  devote  his  attention  to  mat 
ters  merely  local.  Among  the  most  important  of 
these  was  the  project  for  supplying  the  City  of 
New-York  with  water.  The  necessity  of  some 
provision  for  this  purpose  was  also  pressed  upon 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  277 

the  Legislature  in  his  first  message.  This  recom 
mendation,  although  not  acted  upon  at  that  time, 
was  the  first  step  towards  that  grant  of  additional 
powers  to  the  corporation  of  New-York,  which 
has  led  to  the  execution  of  the  plan  of  bringing 
water  from  near  the  sources  of  the  Croton  for  the 
supply  of  the  teeming  population  of  that  city. 

The  same  message  contains  a  recommendation 
that  a  board  of  public  works  should  be  "  constitu 
ted,  with  authority  to  consider  and  report  on  all 
subjects  relative  to  the  establishment  of  communi 
cations  by  land  and  water,  by  roads,  railways, 
bridges,  canals,  and  water-courses,  with  a  general 
superintending  power  over  their  construction." 
In  relation  to  this  plan  he  remarks,  "  The  field  of 
operation,  and  the  harvest  of  honour  and  profit,  are 
unbounded  :  and  if  our  resources  are  wisely  ap 
plied  and  forcibly  directed,  all  proper  demands  for 
important  avenues  of  communication  may  be  an 
swered  in  due  time  and  in  proper  extent."  No 
one  can  look  upon  the  course  which  events  have 
taken  since  his  decease  without  being  satisfied  of 
the  wisdom  of  this  recommendation,  and  of  the 
great  advantage  the  state  would  have  derived  from 
a  board  exercising  a  superintendence  over  all 
plans  of  improvement,  in  the  place  of  one  confi 
ned  in  its  operations  to  the  Erie  and  Champlain 
Canals. 

The  year   1825  was  marked  by  an  incident 


278  AMERICAN    BIOGRA 

J 

which  produced  a  change  in  the  aspect  of  parties, 
and  for  a  time  set  at  defiance/ the  calculations  of 
the  most  experienced  politicians. 

A  person  of  the  name  ofMorgan,  residing  at 
Batavia,  in  Genesee  county,  TiacL  undertaken  to 
publish  the  secrets  of  freemasonry.  This  had  been 
resented  by  some  over-zealous  brethren  of  the  craft, 
and  the  obnoxious  party  was  abducted,  nay,  in  all 
probability,  murdered.  For  this  act  there  can  be 
no  possible  defence.  However  guilty,  in  a  moral 
sense,  may  have  been  the  individual  who  had  vio 
lated  the  solemn  oaths  by  which  it  is  said  the  ad 
mission  to  this  fraternity  is  guarded,  it  was  not  a 
crime  in  the  eye  of  the  law ;  and,  in  a  well-regu 
lated  community,  the  right  of  inflicting  punishment 
even  for  legal  offences  is  not  to  be  exercised  by  in 
dividuals  or  associations. 

Many  have  presumed,  from  the  vengeance  with 
which  Morgan's  publication  was  visited,  that  he 
had  revealed  at  least  a  part  of  the  treasured  secrets 
of  masonry ;  and  the  only  actual  ground  of  fear  to 
which  that  association  was  subjected,  is  to  be  found 
in  the  puerile  character  of  the  ceremonies  it  unfolds. 
They  are,  in  truth,  unmeaning  in  themselves,  and 
mere  contrivances  to  prevent  the  admission  of 
the  uninitiated,  by  requiring  the  remembrance  of 
words,  signals,  and  ceremonies,  which  could  not 
easily  be  compassed  or  imitated  by  those  who  had 
not  received  the  key.  It  is,  however,  said  by 


DEW  ITT    CLINTON.  279 

some,  that  this  association,  deriving  its  origin  from 
the  architects  of  those  magnificent  temples  which 
illustrated  the  ages  called  dark,  possesses  many 
noble  and  sublime  traditions  ;  that  it  imbodies  the 
mystic  knowledge  of  the  Templars,  and  a  tradition 
ary  learning,  whose  amount  may  be  estimated  from 
the  contrast  which  the  skill  and  science  displayed 
in  those  edifices  exhibits,  when  compared  with 
the  ignorance  and  barbarism  of  the  ages  when 
they  were  erected.  Others  claim  for  it  a  still 
more  ancient  origin,  and  trace  it  to  the  builders  of 
the  temples  of  Egypt,  which  remain,  after  the 
lapse  of  forty  centuries,  to  attest  the  genius  and 
talent  of  their  founders. 

Whatever  be  its  origin,  masonry  has,  beyond  a 
doubt,  been  applied  to  some  of  the  noblest  purpo 
ses,  but  may  readily  be  perverted  to  those  of  a 
criminal  or  dangerous  character.  In  our  Revolu 
tionary  struggle,  its  lodges  were  the  places  in 
which  patriots  and  statesmen  matured  schemes  of 
resistance  to  British  power ;  and  the  calamities  of 
war  were  in  more  than  one  instance  relieved  by 
the  feeling  of  masonic  ties.  On  the  Continent  of 
Europe  they  have  been  the  receptacle  of  the  aspi 
rants  for  release  from  the  arbitrary  power  of  civil 
rulers  and  the  sanguinary  tyranny  of  a  persecuting 
church.  The  character  of  a  freemason  had  thus 
become,  in  Italy,  Austria,  and  Spain,  a  mark  for 
proscription.  In  Mexico,  the  two  rites  of  York 

Y 


280  AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHY. 

and  Scotland  have  been  made  the  rallying-points 
of  parties  in  the  state.  In  the  United  States,  initi 
ation  to  masonry  has,  to  all  appearance,  been  con 
ducive  to  the  advancement  of  political  men ;  but, 
as  it  is  accessible  to  both  parties,  it  does  not  ap 
pear  to  have  influenced  the  triumphs  or  defeats  of 
either. 

It  is  one  of  the  peculiarities  of  this  mysterious 
transaction,  that  there  is  little  or  nothing  contain 
ed  in  the  work  of  Morgan  which  had  not  pre 
viously  been  published  in  England  towards  the 
close  of  the  last  century,  without  exciting  remark. 
Many  have,  in  consequence,  imagined  that  his 
sole  object  was  to  make  money  by  the  sale  of  a 
book,  which  might,  to  the  uninitiated,  appear  to  be 
a  revelation  of  the  object  of  their  curiosity,  while 
it  was,  in  truth,  no  breach  of  the  oath  of  secrecy. 

Clinton  had  become  a  freemason  at  an  early 
age,  and  had  been  elected  finally  to  the  highest 
offices  of  the  association.  In  this  capacity,  it  ap 
pears  from  his  correspondence,  that  he  was  repeat 
edly  applied  to  for  advice  as  to  the  obligation  of 
the  masonic  engagement.  Replies  to  such  appli 
cations  occur  in  his  letter-book  long  before  the  ex 
citement  caused  by  the  disappearance  of  Morgan 
arose.  They  are  of  uniform  ten  our,  and  declare 
the  masonic  covenant  to  be  inferior  in  obligation  to 
the  duties  of  the  man,  the  citizen,  and  the  Chris- 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  281 

tran,  to  which,  if  found  in  opposition,  it,  in  his 
opinion,  ought  in  all  respects  to  yield. 

The  abduction  and  probable  murder  of  Morgan 
caused  an  excitement  which  can  only  be  regarded  at 
the  present  day  as  a  passionate  dream.  It  was  not 
directed  against  the  individuals  who  had  been  in 
strumental  in  the  unhallowed  act  alone,  but  against 
all  the  members  of  the  society,  and  was  seized 
upon  by  political  aspirants  as  a  means  of  bringing 
them  into  notice  and  raising  them  to  power.  To 
the  party  thus  formed  Clinton  was  necessarily  ob 
noxious,  from  the  lofty  station  he  held  in  the  broth 
erhood.  He  had,  in  consequence,  a  most  difficult 
part  to  play  ;  for,  while  his  duty  as  the  chief  magis 
trate  of  the  state  called  upon  him  to  take  meas 
ures  for  the  discovery  and  apprehension  of  the  of 
fenders,  the  sweeping  nature  of  the  denunciations, 
and  the  hostile  partisan  spirit  of  which  they  were 
the  expression,  were  offensive  to  him  as  a  man,  and 
injurious  to  him  as  a  politician.  He  did  not,  how 
ever,  falter  in  the  strict  fulfilment  of  his  duties ;  eve 
ry  power  of  his  mind,  every  prerogative  he  pos 
sessed  as  governor,  were  called  into  action  for  the 
purpose  of  bringing  the  offenders  to  justice ;  and 
the  anxiety  he  felt  that  the  supremacy  of  the  law 
should  be  vindicated,  seems  to  have  pressed  upon 
his  already  declining  health.  On  the  other  hand, 
he  could  not  avoid  expressing  his  surprise,  that  the 
unauthorized  and  disavowed  acts  of  a  few  ill-judg- 


282  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

ing  persons  should  be  made  the  grounds  of  pro 
scription  against  all  the  members  of  the  masonic 
fraternity. 

The  sheriff  of  one  of  the  frontier  counties  was 
accused  of  participation  in  the  abduction  of  Mor 
gan.  The  governor  forthwith  propounded  to  him 
a  series  of  written  interrogatories  relative  to  his 
agency  in  the  transaction,  and,  on  his  refusal  to 
answer,  issued  a  proclamation  removing  him  from 
office.  This  person,  it  is  to  be  recollected,  was  his 
steadfast  friend  and  political  supporter;  but  he 
would  not  allow  any  personal  considerations  to 
weigh  against  the  public  interest. 

In  an  interview  which  the  removed  sheriff 
sought,  he  said,  "  Strong  as  is  my  attachment  to 
you,  1  will,  if  you  are  guilty,  exert  myself  to  have 
you  punished  to  the  utmost  extent  of  the  laws." 
To  which  the  trembling  culprit  replied,  in  faltering 
tones, "  I  have  done  nothing  worthy  of  chains  or 
death." 

It  is  to  be  feared  that  this  is  the  last  instance  of 
such  stern  political  virtue.  The  politicians  of  the 
present  day,  far  from  emulating  the  example  of  the 
elder  Brutus,  seem  to  be  willing  to  screen  the  crim 
inal  acts  of  their  adherents ;  and  it  is  more  than 
insinuated,  that  party  devotion  has  been  accepted 
as  an  excuse  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  the  du 
ties  of  office,  and  served  as  a  screen  for  actual 
malversations. 


D  E  W  I  T  T     CLINTON.  283 

The  formation  of  a  political  party  upon  the  ma 
sonic  question,  not  only  in  the  State  of  New-York, 
but  in  those  of  Pennsylvania,  Vermont,  and  New- 
Jersey,  is  not  an  isolated  instance  of  the  avidity 
with  which  political  aspirants  seek  out  any  inci 
dent  on  which  to  ground  partisan  agitation.  It  is, 
however,  of  all  that  have  been  thus  chosen,  per 
haps  the  most  singular,  and  the  least  promising  to 
lead  to  any  of  the  desired  results.  The  excitement 
which  naturally  prevailed  in  the  immediate  neigh 
bourhood  where  the  crime  was  committed,  was 
not  of  the  sort  that  could  be  propagated  to  a  great 
distance ;  and  those  who,  without  feeling  it,  un 
dertook  to  spread  it  from  motives  of  cool  calcula 
tion,  were  grievously  disappointed,  for  the  diversion 
it  caused  in  the  array  of  parties  became  the  sure 
means  of  confirming  the  power  of  their  adversaries. 

When  Clinton  became  a  candidate  for  re-elec 
tion  in  1826,  the  fact  of  his  being  a  mason  was 
made  use  of  to  diminish  his  popularity.  This  ar 
gument  had  its  most  powerful  effect  in  the  very 
region  where  his  greatest  strength  lay ;  namely,  in 
the  part  of  the  state  west  of  the  Cayuga  Lake. 
A  formidable  coalition  was  also  formed  against 
him  from  materials  to  all  appearance  the  most  dis 
cordant.  The  old  supporters  of  Mr.  Crawford  as 
a  candidate  for  the  presidency  were  leagued  with 
the  adherents  of  the  existing  administration,  and  to 
the  latter  were  added  many  of  the  friends  of  Mr. 


284  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

Clay.  The  influence  of  the  custom-house  and 
that  of  the  canal  commissioners  were  called  into 
action  to  defeat  the  election  of  Clinton.  Judge 
Rochester  was  held  up  by  this  coalition  as  a  can 
didate  for  the  office  of  governor.  The  opponents 
of  Clinton  were  unable  to  make  any  impression  on 
his  well-merited  popularity  with  the  people ;  but 
that  very  popularity  was  the  cause  of  an  over-con 
fidence  on  the  part  of  his  friends.  From  these 
causes  the  vote  was  so  far  diminished  from  that  of 
the  previous  election,  that  it  was  estimated  that 
from  twenty  to  thirty  thousand  voters  did  not 
put  in  their  ballots ;  and  all  of  these  were  persons 
who,  had  they  voted,  would  have  voted  for  Clinton. 
In  spite  of  this  remissness  on  the  part  of  his  friends, 
he  was  re-elected  by  a  majority  of  upward  of  four 
thousand. 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  285 


CHAPTER  XX. 

Clinton' }s  views  of  Religious  Worship. — His  Ser 
vices  to  the  Presbyterian  Education  and  Bible 
Societies.  —  His  occasional  Addresses.  —  Great 
change  in  the  Relations  of  Parties.  —  Clinton 
recommends  the  Road  through  the  Southwest- 
ern  tier  of  Counties. — His  Illness  and  Death. — 
Political  Reflections. — Description  of  Clinton's 
Person,  and  Remarks  on  his  Character. ^-Illus 
trations  of  the  importance  of  his  Services  in 
promoting  the  Canal  Policy  of  the  State. 

CLINTON'S  early  education  had  been  strictly  re 
ligious.  The  habits  of  family  worship  and  cate 
chetical  instruction  which  the  first  American  set 
tler  of  the  race  had  brought  from  the  land  of  his 
forefathers,  were  maintained  by  General  James 
Clinton.  Their  faith  was,  as  we  have  seen,  that 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  In  the  excitement  of 
parties  growing  out  of  the  French  Revolution, 
many  of  those  who  were  in  favour  of  the  alliance 
of  the  United  States  with  France,  and  of  the  dem 
ocratic  party  in  general,  either  openly  avowed 
principles  of  infidelity,  or  silently  gave  up  the 
forms  of  attendance  upon  Christian  worship.  In 
this  respect  the  example  of  Jefferson  was  perni- 


286  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

cious,  for  his  opposition  to  an  established  church 
seems  to  have  carried  him  to  the  opposite  extreme 
of  discountenancing  all  public  expression  of  reli 
gious  feeling.  In  spite  of  the  intimate  political 
connexion  of  the  Clintons  with  Jefferson,  they 
were  not  tainted  either  with  the  feelings  of  luke- 
warmness  or  the  errors  of  infidelity.  Clinton's 
alliance  with  a  Quaker  family  in  the  early  part 
of  his  life,  may  have  rendered  him  less  tenacious 
of  the  rites  which  other  Christian  sects  insist  upon, 
and  which  that  denomination  has  rejected ;  but  of 
the  essentials  of  religion  he  was,  even  when  press 
ed  by  political  care  and  personal  anxieties,  a  reg 
ular  and  conscientious  observer.  While  holding 
the  office  of  mayor,  his  punctual  attendance  with 
his  family  on  the  public  services  of  the  Presbyte 
rian  Church  not  only  marked  his  own  belief,  but 
served  as  an  example  to  others.  With  the  vener 
able  Dr.  Rodgers,  the  senior  pastor  of  the  associa 
ted  congregations  of  that  denomination,  and  with 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Miller,  one  of  his  colleagues,  he  was 
in  habits  of  close  and  familiar  intimacy;  and  the 
adhesion  of  these  pious  and  exemplary  men  to  the 
political  party  to  which  Clinton  belonged,  served 
as  a  complete  refutation  of  the  opinion  which 
united  the  democratic  cause  with  the  impious 
principles  of  the  French  Jacobins. 

On  his  removal  to  Albany,  the  same  attention 
to  the  external  forms  of  religion  was  manifest, 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  287 

and  he  became  a  communicant  of  the  Presbyteri 
an  Church.  In  the  conflict  of  rival  creeds,  the 
several  sects  must  look  to  the  influence  and  char 
acter  of  their  lay  members  as  the  proof  of  the  be 
nign  influence  of  their  tenets,  and  as  the  temporal 
support  of  their  principles.  The  Presbyterian 
Church,  in  consequence,  prided  itself,  at  least  as 
much  as  such  pride  in  spiritual  matters  is  war 
ranted,  in  the  possession  of  Clinton  as  a  member, 
and  he,  in  return,  rendered  it  important  services. 

Of  the  numerous  and  munificent  charities  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  that  which  is  intended  to  pro 
vide  for  the  education  of  poor  and  pious  young 
men  for  its  ministry  is  perhaps  the  most  benefi 
cial  in  its  influences.  In  the  ever-growing  popu 
lation  of  our  country,  the  means  of  religious  in 
struction  have  in  general  been  behind  the  increase 
of  numbers,  and  always  in  arrear  of  the  exten 
sion  of  our  settlements.  The  Presbyterian  Church, 
holding  that  the  days  of  inspiration  are  past,  makes 
a  sound  education,  and  proficiency  in  human  knowl 
edge,  preliminaries  to  the  reception  of  its  ordina 
tion.  In  this  it  has  acted  with  temporal  wisdom, 
as  well  as  with  sound  views  of  the  spiritual  benefit 
of  its  members.  Nothing  is  so  likely  to  bring  re 
ligion  into  contempt  as  ignorance  on  the  part  of 
those  who  assume  to  be  its  teachers.  Zeal  with 
out  knowledge  is  almost  certain  to  run  into  fanat 
ical  excess ;  and  the  exposition  of  Christian  doc- 

Z 


288  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

trine  requires,  in  the  absence  of  the  supernatural 
gifts  which  distinguished  the  early  age  of  the 
church,  no  small  extent  of  classical  learning. 
The  rapid  improvements  of  science  are  continually 
renewing  the  question  how  far  its  discoveries  are 
consistent  with  the  real  truths  of  revelation.  An 
tiquated  interpretations  of  texts  have  been  found 
ed  on  ancient  theories  in  physics,  which  modern 
improvements  have  exploded.  The  scoffer  has 
taken  advantage  of  such  apparent  contradiction, 
and  has  applied  it  to  the  propagation  of  infidel 
doctrines.  The  churchman  who  shall  neglect  to 
become  acquainted  with  scientific  principles,  and 
to  watch  the  progress  of  physical  knowledge, 
may,  in  the  arguments  which  the  unlimited  free 
dom  of  discussion  that  the  institutions  of  our  coun 
try  so  wisely  and  fortunately  admit  of,  become 
involved  in  a  dilemma  which,  to  the  uninformed 
and  unreflecting,  may  be  the  foundation  of  infidel 
opinions.  All  are  aware  of  the  injury  which  was 
done  to  the  Christian  belief  of  many  anxious  in 
quirers,  by  the  pertinacious  opposition  of  over- 
zealous  churchmen  to  the  discoveries  of  geology, 
which,  although  for  a  time  rejected  by  them,  are 
supported  by  such  irrefragable  evidence,  that  no 
one  who  inquires  can  possibly  refuse  his  assent. 

It  is  also  of  vast  importance  that  a  large  pro 
portion  of  the  teachers  of  religion  should  be  taken 
from  among  those  in  moderate  circumstances,  or 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  289 

even  in  poverty.  The  habits  of  those  who  are 
reared  among  the  more  opulent  classes  of  society, 
particularly  when  united  with  those  formed  in 
scholastic  institutions,  are  a  bad  preparation  for 
the  hardships  and  privations  of  a  frontier  settle 
ment  ;  while  the  spiritual  welfare  of  the  people  is 
generally  best  promoted  by  a  pastor  who  can  en 
ter  into  the  feelings  and  unite  in  the  society  of  his 
parishioners. 

Of  the  Education  Society,  founded  to  promote 
such  objects  in  the  Presbyterian  Church,  Clinton 
was  a  valuable  and  useful  member,  and  held  for 
several  years  the  office  of  vice-president. 

While  he  thus  manifested  his  preference  for  the 
form  of  worship  preferred  by  his  forefathers,  he 
was  influenced  by  no  feelings  of  sectarian  bigotry. 
The  mere  forms  of  worship,  and  even  differences 
in  tenets,  he  regarded  as  unimportant,  so  far  as  the 
public  was  concerned,  provided  the  religion  pro 
fessed  produced  its  proper  influence  on  the  life  and 
morals. 

Of  the  institutions  of  human  origin,  that  which 
has  tended  in  the  highest  degree  to  extend  the 
knowledge  of  the  Christian  faith  in  distant  lands, 
and  to  enlarge  its  influence  in  our  own,  is  the 
Bible  Society.  Of  this  inestimable  institution 
Clinton  was  one  of  the  first  officers,  and  held  for 
some  years  previous  to  his  death  the  office  of  a 
vice-president. 


290  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

In  addition  to  his  numerous  reports  on  subjects 
of  national  interest,  his  speeches  to  the  Legisla 
ture,  and  the  many  laws  of  which  he  furnished  the 
draughts,  Clinton  was,  as  we  have  seen,  a  distin 
guished  writer  on  scientific  subjects.  He  also 
wrote  and  delivered  many  occasional  addresses. 
Of  these  we  may  cite,  in  high  terms  of  commenda 
tion,  his  eulogy  on  Fulton  and  Livingston,  and  his 
orations  before  the  alumni  of  Columbia  and  Union 
Colleges.  These  addresses  form,  as  has  been  well 
remarked,  the  most  peculiar  feature  of  American 
literature,  from  their  vast  number  and  general 
ability.  In  accepting  the  invitations  to  deliver 
such  addresses,  Clinton  was  brought  into  direct 
contrast,  not  with  the  politicians  and  statesmen 
so  much  as  with  the  most  eminent  literary  and 
scientific  men  of  the  age  and  country.  It  is 
enough  for  his  reputation  to  say  that  he  did  not 
suffer  in  his  character  as  a  writer  by  this  com 
parison. 

Clinton's  accession  to  the  office  of  governor  by 
re-election  in  1827  was  attended  with  a  most  sin 
gular  revolution  among  politicians.  His  ancient 
opponents  had  been  divided  into  two  parties,  one 
of  which,  after  having  supported  Mr.  Crawford  as 
a  candidate  for  the  presidency,  had  united  with 
the  friends  of  General  Jackson ;  the  other  sustain 
ed  the  policy  of  the  administration  of  Mr.  Adams. 
Clinton  had  felt  a  preference  for  General  Jackson, 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  291 

although  he  had  taken  no  active  part  in  the  elec 
tion,  which  terminated  in  the  choice  of  Mr.  Adams. 
The  acts  of  the  office-holders  of  the  general  gov 
ernment  and  of  the  personal  friends  of  Mr.  Ad 
ams  left  him  no  alternative  but  to  avow  his  pref 
erence,  and  he  was  thus  placed  in  the  position  of 
a  leader,  and  the  most  prominent  personage  of  a 
party  which  was,  in  a  great  measure,  made  up  of 
his  most  constant  and  bitter  opponents.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  masonic  question  had  resulted  in  the 
organization  of  a  party,  many  of  whose  members 
were  drawn  from  among  the  most  steady  support 
ers  of  his  policy,  which  was  opposed  to  the  elec 
tion  of  Jackson. 

The  triumph  which  speedily  followed  in  the 
election  of  General  Jackson  to  the  presidency,  ap 
peared  to  open  new  views  of  ambition  to  Clinton. 
It  was  generally  believed  that  the  new  president 
wrould  have  called  him  to  a  distinguished  position 
in  his  cabinet,  and  that  Clinton  would  not,  on  this 
occasion,  have  declined  the  invitation.  In  this 
station  he  would  have  been  placed  as  the  most 
prominent  candidate  for  the  succession.  This  new 
opportunity  for  the  exercise  of  his  talents  in  the 
services  of  his  country  was  not  vouchsafed  him. 
It  might  be  a  matter  of  curious  speculation  to 
conjecture  how  far  the  acceptance  by  Clinton  to 
a  place  in  the  cabinet  would  have  influenced  the 
course  of  General  Jackson's  administration;  and 


292  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

how  long  two  men,  equally  determined  in  the  sup 
port  of  the  measures  they  considered  to  be  proper, 
could  have  remained  in  amicable  relations.  It  can 
now  be  seen  that  many  of  the  measures  of  Gen 
eral  Jackson's  administration  were  in  opposition 
to  the  avowed  opinions  of  Clinton,  \vhile  in  others 
he  would  have  cordially  united. 

He  would  probably,  also,  have  striven  to  moder 
ate  the  excessive  zeal  by  which  principles  in  them 
selves  correct  were,  carried  by  that  energetic  man 
beyond  the  verge  of  expediency ;  and  there  can 
be  little  doubt  that  he  would  have  been  able  to 
exercise  an  influence  for  good,  which  was  possess 
ed  by  none  of  his  subsequent  advisers.  Such 
speculations  are,  however,  futile ;  for  it  is  now 
known  that  he  had  determined  to  decline  office 
under  the  new  administration,  not,  as  he  said,  from 
any  want  of  regard  to  General  Jackson,  but  be 
cause  he  considered  his  station  as  governor  of 
New-York  by  the  election  of  the  people  more 
honourable  than  any  appointment  in  the  gift  of 
the  general  government. 

Clinton's  message  to  the  Legislature  in  1827 
contains  the  announcement  of  the  final  and  com 
plete  triumph  of  the  canal  policy  of  the  state. 
He  had  the  gratification  to  announce  that  the  tolls 
of  the  preceding  year  had  amounted  to  seven  hun 
dred  and  seventy  thousand  dollars,  or  to  nearly 
twice  the  amount  of  the  interest  on  the  debt  con- 


D  E  W  I  T  T     CLINTON.  293 

tracted  for  the  construction  of  the  canals;  while 
the  whole  revenue  of  the  fund  amounted  to  up 
ward  of  a  million.  With  this  decided  proof  of 
the  success  of  internal  improvements  conducted  on 
the  part  of  the  state,  Clinton  presses  upon  the  Le 
gislature  the  propriety  of  aiding  in  other  under 
takings,  and,  in  some  instances,  of  assuming  them 
for  the  public  account.  He  more  particularly  re 
fers  to  the  projected  road  through  the  southwestern 
tier  of  counties.  In  respect  to  this,  he  declares 
that  he  is  willing  to  encounter  his  full  share  of  the 
responsibility  of  the  measure  he  recommends. 

Among  other  important  points  in  this  message, 
he  recommends  corrections  in  the  criminal  code, 
and  gives  instances  where  it  is  of  an  oppressive 
and  unjust  character,  as  well  as  unequal  in  its  op 
eration. 

Of  these  recommendations,  that  in  relation  to 
the  road  through  the  southwestern  counties  is  the 
most  important.  Investigations  held  subsequently, 
and  the  improvements  made  in  the  construction 
of  railroads,  have  satisfied  the  parties  interested  in 
this  improvement  that  it  can  be  better  effected  by 
means  of  a  railway  than  by  a  common  road.  In 
this  view  of  the  subject  Clinton  would  in  all 
probability  have  concurred ;  and  there  can  be  no 
doubt  that  he  would  have  urged  with  all  his  in 
fluence  the  construction  of  this  railroad  by  the 
state.  The  Legislature  has  been  of  a  different 


294  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

opinion,  and  the  construction  of  the  road  has  been 
intrusted  to  an  incorporated  company.  All  the 
evils  which  Clinton  anticipated  from  this  act  have 
followed.  The  probable  profits  are  not  sufficient 
to  attract  a  sufficient  amount  of  capital ;  the  stock, 
although  subscribed,  has  not  been  paid  up  ;  and  the 
project  must  either  be  abandoned,  or  the  state  must 
assume  the  responsibility  of  constructing  it. 

In  the  summer  of  1827  Clinton  made  a  tour 
through  Connecticut,  and  parts  of  the  states  of 
New-Hampshire,  Vermont,  and  Massachusetts.  He 
was  received  throughout  not  only  with  the  distinc 
tion  due  to  his  rank  as  governor  of  the  State  of 
New-York,  but  with  the  enthusiasm  excited  by  his 
services  in  the  cause  of  internal  improvement. 
While  it  was  impossible  that  any  feeling  could 
exist  in  these  states  at  all  approaching  to  the  re 
gard  and  gratitude  with  which  he  was  regarded 
by  many  of  the  citizens  of  New-York,  he,  on  the 
other  hand,  was  spared  the  pain  of  meeting  those 
who  looked  upon  him  as  an  obstacle  to  their  plans 
of  partisan  aggrandizement.  His  journey  was 
therefore  attended  with  unmingled  feelings  of 
gratification. 

Towards  the  close  of  the  same  year  Clinton 
was  attacked  by  a  disorder  to  all  appearance 
slight,  tt,  however,  resisted  all  the  efforts  of  med 
icine,  and  finally  deprived  him  of  life.  In  conse 
quence  of  the  incapacity  for  taking  the  quantity 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  295 

of  exercise  to  which  he  had  been  previously  ac 
customed,  his  life  had  become  in  a  great  measure 
sedentary,  and  his  constitution  no  longer  possessed 
the  power  of  throwing  off  the  causes  which  might 
produce  disease.  The  form  of  a  mere  cold,  which 
the  disorder  at  first  assumed,  appeared  to  furnish 
no  cause  for  anxiety ;  but  it  pressed  upon  him  by 
slow  and  insidious  steps.  The  powers  of  his  mind 
hardly  appear  to  have  been  affected;  and,  while 
he  sustained  some  feelings  of  bodily  uneasiness,  he 
was  yet  able  to  apply  himself  to  his  official  duties. 
Among  the  very  last  events  of  his  life  is  a  letter 
addressed  to  one  of  the  circuit  judges,  in  reference 
to  an  act  that  came  properly  within  his  cognizance 
as  governor,  which  is  distinguished  by  all  the 
clearness  and  ability  of  his  most  vigorous  days. 

The  disorder  took  the  form  of  a  dropsy  of  the 
chest,  affecting  in  an  especial  degree  the  heart 
and  lungs.  His  death  was  without  warning,  and 
while  his  friends  anticipated  no  immediate  danger. 
It  took  place  on  the  llth  of  February,  1828,  in 
the  presence  of  his  eldest  son,  who  acted  as  his 
private  secretary.  He  had  taken  a  drive  in  the 
morning,  visited  the  Capitol,  and  transacted  busi 
ness  as  usual.  In  the  afternoon  he  wrote  up  his 
diary,  and  perused  all  the  letters  received  by  the 
evening  mails,  and  was  thus  engaged  until  within 
a  fewr  minutes  of  his  death. 

Although  his  danger  was  not  feared  by  his  fam- 


296  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

ily,  he  himself  was  fully  aware  of  the  approach 
of  his  last  hour.  His  friend  Dr.  Hosack,  who, 
while  he  resided  in  New- York,  had  been  his  phy 
sician,  visited  him  in  Albany,  and  felt  it  his  duty 
to  communicate  how  precarious  his  position  was, 
and  that  his  disease  must  soon  terminate  fatally. 
Sustained  by  a  well-founded  religious  belief,  and 
the  consciousness  of  a  well-spent  life,  he  replied 
that  he  "  was  not  afraid  to  die,"  and  the  porten 
tous  announcement  produced  no  apparent  change 
in  his  cheerfulness,  or  alteration  in  his  attention  to 
the  public  business. 

His  countenance  underwent  no  change  in  death ; 
there  was  no  struggle  or  convulsion;  the  colour 
of  his  cheeks  was  unchanged ;  and  his  departure 
was  as  quiet  as  if  he  had  dropped  asleep. 

The  death  of  no  person  ever  produced  a  greater 
and  more  general  expression  of  sorrow  through 
out  the  whole  state,  and  in  a  great  portion  of  the 
Union. 

The  feelings  of  party  animosity,  which  had  pur- 
suevl  him  through  life,  and  which  had  not  altogeth 
er  abated,  ceased  at  once.  All  classes,  ranks,  and 
factions  joined  in  deploring  his  loss,  at  the  mo 
ment  when  his  services  were  as  much  needed  as 
they  had  ever  been,  and  when  he  appeared  to  be 
more  than  ever  capable  of  rendering  them.  The 
citizens,  in  public  meetings  in  all  the  cities  of  the 
state ;  the  Legislature,  which  was  in  session  at  the 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  297 

time,  and  the  municipal  corporations,  united  in  the 
expression  of  a  heartfelt  sorrow. 

The  history  of  Clinton  imbodies  that  of  the  par 
ties  which  have  agitated  the  State  of  New-York 
from  the  close  of  the  war  of  the  Revolution.  The 
existence  of  two  opposing  factions  seems  to  be  in 
separable  from  the  nature  of  a  free  government,  and 
their  balance  may  be  almost  essential  to  its  exist 
ence.  Furious  as  have  been  the  contests  in  words, 
and  inveterate  as  have  been  the  personal  hostili 
ties  that  have  in  some  cases  been  generated,  it  is 
a  favourable  augury  for  the  stability  of  our  insti 
tutions,  that,  since  the  adoption  of  the  federal  Con 
stitution,  no  question  has  been  agitated  having  any 
real  bearing  upon  the  great  principles  on  which 
the  government  is  founded.  The  longjcontest  of 
the  federa]_and  democratic^ffiffiegT^as  grounded 
in  a  great  degree  upon  foreign  policy,  however 
loudly  the  one  party  was  charged 


Jng  aristocratic,  and  the  other  of  a  fpnrlpnry  fr>  rlig- 
organizing  principles^  Since  that  time,  personal 
preferences,  and  the  contest  for  places  of  emolu 
ment,  have  been,  in  general,  the  springs  of  political 

[t   hag  tJins   happPnpH     fhaf    frnm   th^  mn- 


ment  the  old  federal  party  fell  to  pieces,  the  dis 
tinctions  of  party  have  ceased  ;  and  the  same  men 
have  been  seen  alternately  caressed  and  proscribed 
by  the  coalition  calling  themselves  the  old  dem 
ocratic  party.  It  has  been  no  agreeable  task  to 


298  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

hunt  up  the  records  of  political  changes.  Clinton 
was  by  them  made,  as  has  been  seen,  alternately 
the  idol  and  the  proscribed  of  the  dominant  party ; 
and  in  it  have  figured  his  ancient  federal  opponents, 
as  well  as  his  original  democratic  allies.  For  him 
self,  he  was  separated  at  an  early  period  from  the 
mass  of  politicians,  who  pursue  their  vocation  prin 
cipally  for  the  purpose  of  their  own  aggrandize 
ment.  One  favourite  object,  the  improvement  of 
the  internal  navigation  of  the  state,  furnished  him 
with  a  mark  for  his  aspirations  which  distinguish 
ed  him  from  the  vulgar  herds  of  faction.  No  man 
was  a  warmer  and  more  active  partisan  than  him 
self  ;  but  his  most  violent  denunciations  of  his  op 
ponents  had  one  redeeming  quality — they  were  in 
tended  to  aid  in  the  triumph  of  the  policy  whence 
the  state  has  received  so  much  benefit. 

In  the  warmth  of  his  political  feelings  he  not  un- 
frequently  committed  the  mistake  of  supposing  those 
who  opposed  him  from  personal  feelings,  or  in  the 
hope  of  acquiring  ascendency  from  his  downfall, 
to  be  influenced  by  motives  of  less  creditable  de 
scription  ;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  he  in  s<  me 
instances  overrated  the  capacity  of  those  who  re 
mained  his  steadfast  friends  both  in  good  and  evil 
report.  The  warmth  of  his  temperament,  which 
made  him  a  strenuous  friend,  or  an  active  but 
generous  enemy,  rendered  him  at  times  the  advo 
cate  of  those  who  little  merited  his  support,  and 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  299 

placed  him  in  active  opposition  to  some  who,  from 
similarity  of  views  on  the  great  question  of  inter 
nal  improvement,  were  fitted  to  be  the  most  use 
ful  partisans  of  the  measures  in  which  he  took  so 
strong  an  interest. 

Clinton's  person,  in  his  youth  and  early  manhood, 
was  remarkable  for  its  masculine  beauty,  and,  as 
years  advanced,  assumed  a  majestic  character.  His 
stature  was  upward  of  six  feet,  straight,  and  finely 
proportioned.  His  eyes  were  a  dark  hazel,  ap 
proaching  to  black,  and  highly  expressive ;  his 
hair  brown ;  his  complexion  clear,  and  more  florid 
than  usual  among  Americans  ;  his  teeth  fine,  giv 
ing  a  peculiar  grace  to  his  smile  ;  his  nose  slightly 
aquiline.  His  habits  of  reflection  and  close  study 
were  marked  in  the  ordinary  expression  of  his 
countenance,  which,  controlled  at  an  early  period 
of  his  life  to  the  gravity  becoming  the  magistrate 
and  the  senator,  presented  an  appearance  of  se 
riousness  almost  approaching  to  austerity.  When 
speaking  in  public,  however,  his  face  expressed, 
with  the  utmost  flexibility,  the  varying  emotions  to 
which  his  words  gave  vent ;  while  in  the  inter 
course  of  private  life  and  in  familiar  conversation, 
the  gravity,  which  rested  on  his  features  when  not 
excited,  gave  way  on  occasion  to  playfulness  and 
mirth. 

His  portraits,  which  were  painted  by  many  of 
our  best  artists,  and  his  bust  by  Brouwere,  exhibit, 


«fc 
300  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

in  almost  all  cases,  the  expression  of  gravity  and 
reflection.  They  thus  give  little  idea  of  the  more 
agreeable  lineaments  of  his  countenance. 

He  was  as  exemplary  in  his  private  relations  as 
he  was  distinguished  in  public  life — a  good  and 
affectionate  husband ;  a  kind  and  judicious  father ; 
a  friend  who  in  many  cases  sacrificed  his  own  in 
terests  in  order  to  benefit  those  who  were  faithful 
to  him.  No  shade  of  suspicion,  in  all  the  vitupera 
tion  which  was  showered  on  him  by  political  ad 
versaries,  was  ever  cast  on  his  moral  character. 

Although  reserved  in  his  manner  in  mixed  so 
cieties,  he  was  playful,  sportive,  and  cheerful  in 
his  intercourse  with  his  children,  kind,  and  of  the 
most  even  temper.  Hence  his  absence  was  always 
regretted  by  them,  and  his  return  welcomed  with 
demonstrations  of  joy. 

He  was  an  early  riser,  and  generally  despatched 
his  correspondence,  which  was  often  voluminous, 
before  he  breakfasted.  He  thus  had  the  remain 
der  of  the  day  at  his  disposal ;  and,  while  laborious 
to  an  extent  equalled  by  few  even  of  professional 
men,  had  the  appearance  of  almost  perfect  leisure 
during  the  ordinary  hours  of  business.  Hence, 
wrhile  holding  official  stations,  he  was  always  ac 
cessible  ;  and  the  crowd  of  visiters  which  he  ad 
mitted  did  not  intrench  on  the  strict  performance 
of  his  duties. 

It  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable  features  in  his 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  301 

career,,  that  lie  was  never  defeated  in  any  election 
when  the  question  was  submitted  directly  to  the 
people.  The  only  instance  in  which  he  was  an 
unsuccessful  candidate  for  an  elective  office  was 
that  in  which  he  was  opposed  to  Madison  as  an 
aspirant  for  the  presidency;  and,  although  there  is 
little  probability  that  the  result  would  have  been 
affected  by  a  vote  not  conveyed  through  the  elec 
toral  colleges,  the  proposition  is  true  to  the  letter. 

On  this  occasion  he  may  have  departed  from 
his  usual  prudent  plan  of  weighing  well  the 
chances  before  he  submitted  his  pretensions  to  the 
people ;  but  there  were  causes  at  work  which  jus 
tify  his  course,  if  brought  to  no  other  test  than  that 
of  political  expediency.  His  uncle  had  a  short 
time  before  become  aware  of  a  project,  entertained 
by  the  administration  at  Washington,  for  dismem 
bering  the  State  of  New-York,  and  disappointed 
politicians  were  named  who  were  to  have  been 
the  willing  instruments  of  this  suicidal  act.  It 
therefore  became  necessary  to  show  that  the  dem 
ocratic  party  to  the  North  was  not  in  all  respects 
subservient  to  the  policy  of  Virginia,  which  viewed 
the  rising  greatness  of  New-York  with  distrust 
and  jealousy. 

This  fact  in  relation  to  Clinton's  uniform  suc 
cess  whenever  he  came  before  the  public  as  can 
didate  for  an  elective  office,  would  appear  to  jus 
tify  his  declared  confidence  in  the  ultimate  judg- 


302  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

ment  of  the  majority.  With  this  strong  convic 
tion,  he  appears  never  to  have  considered  what 
would  be  the  temporary  effect  of  his  measures, 
but  only  whether  they  were  right  in  themselves, 
and  calculated  to  promote  the  general  prosperity; 
satisfied  that,  when  the  mists  of  prejudice  in 
which  they  might  be  involved  by  their  opponents 
had  cleared  away,  his  motives  would  be  appre 
ciated  and  his  conduct  approved.  It  thus  hap 
pened  more  than  once  in  his  political  life,  that 
the  outcry  raised  against  him  and  his  measures 
became  so  great  that  he  appeared  to  have  lost 
all  favour  with  the  public ;  and  yet,  no  sooner  had 
time  for  reflection  been  allowed,  than  he  was  ele 
vated  to  the  highest  office  in  the  people's  gift. 
On  these  occasions  he  retired  from  the  strife  of 
party  until  time  had  been  allowed  for  the  cool 
judgment  of  the  majority  to  be  formed,  and,  to 
the  surprise  of  his  opponents,  returned  anew  to 
the  political  arena,  and  carried  all  before  him. 

Whatever  errors  in  principle  or  practice  he  may 
have  committed,  his  motives  were  alwrays  pure, 
and  directed,  not  to  the  attainment  of  a  temporary 
popularity,  but  to  the  great  end  of  the  public 
good.  With  more  of  flexibility,  he  might  have 
escaped  the  political  reverses  he  experienced,  but 
he  never  could  have  risen  with  such  irresistible 
strength  as  he  exhibited  in  the  elections  of  1818 
and  1826. 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  303 

Violent  as  were  the  contests  in  which  he  was 
occasionally  engaged,  they  seem  never  to  have 
produced  any  rankling  in  his  mind ;  and  even  those 
who  had  been  the  instruments  of  actual  or  intend 
ed  injury,  were  readily  forgiven  whenever  they 
saw  and  acknowledged  that  they  had  been  in 
error.  His  conduct  seems  to  have  been  governed 
by  the  Roman  maxim  of  policy,  "parcere  subjectis, 
et  debellare  superbos" 

We  may  cite,  as  an  illustration  of  this  feature 
of  his  character,  his  conduct  to  Gould  and  Ward. 
This  bookselling  firm  had  become  the  publishers 
of  a  pamphlet  which  was  libellous  upon  his  char 
acter,  and  his  indignation  was  so  much  excited  as 
to  induce  him  to  threaten  a  prosecution.  No 
sooner,  however,  had  they  become  sensible  that 
they  had  been  made  the  instruments  of  a  false 
and  malicious  charge,  and  expressed  their  regret 
at  the  want  of  caution  they  had  exhibited,  than  he 
dropped  all  proceedings  and  freely  forgave  them. 

Numerous  as  were  the  attacks  made  upon  him 
through  the  medium  of  the  press,  there  was  but 
one  other  instance  in  which  he  contemplated  an 
appeal  to  a  legal  tribunal  in  vindication  of  his 
character.  This  was  a  case  growing  out  of  the 
antimasonic  excitement.  In  the  last  year  of  his 
life  he  was  charged  with  having,  in  his  masonic 
capacity,  sanctioned  the  outrage  committed  on 
Morgan.  The  charge  was  so  entirely  destitute  of 
A  A 


304  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

any  foundation,  that  the  libeller  saw  that  there 
was  no  hope  for  justification.  He  therefore  threw 
himself  on  the  mercy  of  Clinton,  and  admitted  the 
falsehood  of  the  accusation.  In  this  instance  also 
he  refrained  from  farther  prosecution,  although  it 
is  clear  that  he  must  have  recovered  ample  dama 
ges.  His  only  purpose  was  the  vindication  of  his 
fame,  and,  that  accomplished,  he  saw  no  object  in 
persisting  in  the  suit. 

In  this,  as  in  many  other  cases,  he  showed  an 
indifference  to  money.  He  had,  in  fact,  no  dis 
position  to  accumulate  pecuniary  fortune,  and 
exhibited  no  talent  for  money-making.  In  the 
hands  of  one  who  would  have  made  wealth  his 
great  object  of  pursuit,  his  patrimonial  inheritance 
and  the  portion  of  his  first  wife  might  have  been 
the  basis  of  a  great  accumulation  of  property, 
while  the  opportunities  for  advantageous  invest 
ment  opened  to  him  in  his  office  of  canal  commis 
sioner  might,  in  hands  less  pure,  have  been  the 
source  of  unbounded  riches.  In  spite  of  these  op 
portunities,  he  died  in  honourable  poverty,  and 
even  the  plate  presented  to  him  by  the  merchants 
of  New-York  was  exposed  for  sale  after  his  death. 

His  charities  were  abundant;  and  there  were 
instances,  when  compelled  by  a  sense  of  duty  to 
refuse  the  petition  of  a  mother  or  wife  for  the 
pardon  of  a  son  or  a  husband,  that  he  gave  from 
his  own  purse  the  means  of  repairing,  in  some  de- 


DEWITT    CLINTON.  305 

gree,  the  distress  growing  out  of  the  conviction  of 
the  criminal  relative. 

Enough  of  time  has  elapsed  since  his  death  to 
make  the  opinions  now  held  of  him  almost  tanta 
mount  to  the  judgment  of  posterity.  If  a  few  of 
his  ancient  opponents  remain,  who  cannot  divest 
themselves  of  the  opinions  derogatory  to  his  char 
acter  which  they  once  in  sincerity  entertained; 
and  if  there  be  others  who  cannot  consistently  dis 
avow  the  expressions  they  uttered  in  the  heat  of 
party  debate ;  the  generation  which  is  now  rising, 
without  a  dissenting  voice,  awards  to  him  the 
praise  due  to  an  enlightened  and  energetic  magis 
trate,  a  learned  and  impartial  judge,  an  honest 
and  patriotic  politician,  a  dignified  administrator 
of  the  government.  More  than  all,  no  voice  is 
now  raised  to  question  the  important  share  he 
took  in  originating,  carrying  forward,  and  com 
pleting  the  policy  to  which  the  Erie  and  Cham- 
plain  Canals  are  due,  while  few  hesitate  in  ascri 
bing  to  him  so  great  a  degree  of  merit  in  the  ad 
vancement  of  this  policy,  as  to  sink  the  services  of 
all  other  persons  into  comparative  insignificance. 

However  meritorious  may  have  been  the  servi 
ces  of  the  subordinate  agents  in  any  great  event, 
history  rarely  records  any  but  the  chief  performer. 
We  speak  of  the  conquests  of  Alexander  and  the 
victories  of  Caesar,  without  reference  to  the  thou 
sands  of  gallant  soldiers  and  hundreds  of  skilful 


306  AMERICAN     BIOGRAPHY. 

officers  who  aided  in  those  exploits,  and  we  com 
mit  no  injustice  ;  for,  if  led  by  men  of  less  genius, 
the  valour  of  the  one  and  the  tactics  of  the  other 
might  not  have  saved  them  from  defeat. 

When  we  contemplate  the  finished  statue,  we 
think  not  of  the  labourers  who  have  torn  the  mar 
ble  mass  from  the  quarry,  nor  even  of  the  skilful 
workmen  who  have  chiselled  down  its  superfluous 
parts  to  an  approach  to  the  figure  of  the  clay 
model  in  which  the  master  artist  has  imbodied 
his  vivid  thoughts ;  but  to  that  artist  who  has  re 
served  to  himself  no  more  than  the  final  touches, 
we  ascribe  the  merit  of  the  performance.  And  so 
of  the  majestic  temples  of  the  Christian  faith ;  the 
architect  receives  all  Our  praises  or  undergoes  our 
criticisms,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  who  have  been 
employed  in  the  construction.  When  Michael 
Angelo  uttered  the  sublime  thought,  "  I  will  raise 
the  Pantheon  on  the  Temple  of  Peace,"  he  im 
printed  a  character  on  the  basilic  of  St.  Peter's 
which  the  mistakes  and  bad  taste  of  his  success 
ors  could  not  impair. 

To  descend  to  arts  more  strictly  mechanic :  we 
never  inquire,  when  we  read  the  name  of  an  Ar 
nold  on  a  chronometer,  or  of  a  Breguest  on  a 
watch,  through  what  a  multitude  of  hands  the 
several  parts  of  the  instruments  have  passed,  for 
we  know  that  these  great  workmen  have  impress 
ed  their  own  style  of  working  on  the  crude  form 


DEWITT     CLINTON.  307 

in  which  they  have  received  thelh  from  the  manu 
facturers,  and  have  combined  the  accessories  fur 
nished  by  others  in  such  manner  as  no  other  could 
have  identically  accomplished. 

^uch  exactly  is  the  relation  which  Clinton  holds 
towards  the  canal  system  of  the  State  of  New- 
York.  He  is  the  chief  under  whose  guidance  the 
political  battle  for  its  erection  was  fought;  the 
artist  who.  gave  form  and  shape  to  the  laws  by 
which  it  was  enacted,  and  the  system  of  finance 
,by  which  it  was  upheld;  he  was  not  the  first  to 
discern  the  practicability  of  the  Erie  route,  but  he 
drew  the  argument  by  which  its  superiority  over 
the  less  expensive  course  to  Oswego  was  demon 
strated  ;  finally,  he  was  for  fourteen  years,  from 
the  time  when  the  canals  were  first  projected,  until 
their  success  was  beyond  all  possibility  of  doubt, 
the  point  in  which  all  communications,  partial  ex 
aminations,  and  useful  hints  centred,  and  whence 
they  were  promulgated  to  the  public  under  the 
sanction  of  his  authority,  adorned  by  the  graces 
of  his  diction,  and  improved  by  the  accuracy  of  his 
judgment  Foreign  nations,  anticipating  the  ver 
dict  of  posterity,  connect  no  other  name  but  that 
of  Clinton  with  the  Canals  of  the  State  of  New- 
York ;  and  posterity  itself  will,  beyond  all  ques 
tion,  elevate  him  in  like  manner  above  all  others 
who  have  in  any  way  aided  in  organizing  and 
completing  our  canal  system. 


APPENDIX. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  Governor  George  Clinton. 

Washington,  January  llth,  1803. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

THE  public  mind  is  much  agitated,  and  the  public  interests 
are  deeply  implicated,  by  the  infraction  of  the  treaty  by  the 
Spanish  intendant  of  New-Orleans  in  withdrawing  that  place  as 
a  depositary  for  American  produce  coming  down  the  Missis 
sippi,  without  assigning  any  equivalent  establishment.  I  shall 
present  you  with  a  brief  statement  of  this  transaction  so  far  as 
it  is  interesting,  and  so  far  as  I  have  obtained  correct  informa 
tion.  Independently  of  other  inducements  for  making  this  com 
munication,  you  must  be  apprized  that  the  city  of  New- York 
now  actually  commands,  and  will,  according  to  every  calculation 
of  probability,  continue  to  command,  the  greatest  part  of  the 
New-Orleans,  or,  rather,  the  Mississippi  trade  ;  that  during  the 
last  year  two  hundred  and  thirty  American  vessels  were  em 
ployed  in  it ;  that  this  commerce  will  accumulate  with  the  ex 
tension  of  our  western  settlements,  and  that,  therefore,  the  Span 
ish  proceedings  are  calculated  to  inflict  an  injury  upon  our  trade, 
the  magnitude  of  which  is  at  present  beyond  calculation. 

The  following  facts,  connected  with  and  respecting  this  busi 
ness,  are,  I  believe,  accurate. 

1st.  That  the  act  of  the  intendant  was  contrary  to  the  wishes 
»f  the  governor. 

2d.  That  the  authority  of  the  intendant,  in  relation  to  the  fiscal 
and  commercial  concerns  of  the  colony,  is  independent  of  that  of 
the  governor. 

3d.  That  the  intendant  is  a  man  of  no  influence  at  court,  and 


310  APPENDIX. 

has  grown  rich  from  a  very  low  origin  ;  and  that  his  proceedings 
are,  in  all  probability,  intended  to  increase  his  wealth  by  their 
subserviency  to  a  commercial  speculation. 

4th.  That  the  court  of  Madrid  has  not,  in  any  shape,  author 
ized  his  conduct. 

5th.  That  Louisiana,  in  the  Spanish  as  well  as  the  French 
acceptation,  comprehends  not  only  the  country  on  the  west  side 
of  the  Mississippi  as  far  as  Mexico,  but  New-Orleans  and  the 
Floridas. 

6th.  That  this  country  is  comprised  in  one  government  and 
one  intendancy  under  the  denomination  of  Louisiana. 

7th.  That,  by  the  treaty  of  Amiens,  Louisiana  was  ceded  to 
France.  That  the  British  minister  gave  to  Mr.  King  a  copy  of 
the  treaty  which  contained  this  cession  ;  but  that,  in  the  whole 
course  of  the  negotiation  for  peace,  the  British  abstained  from 
putting  a  direct  interrogatory  on  this  subject. 

8th.  That  it  is  not  ascertained  whether  the  French  mean  to 
take  possession  of  the  ceded  country  ;  and,  if  they  intend  it,  the 
time  when  is  of  course  a  profound  secret. 

9th.  That  the  Spanish  minister  here  immediately  sent  an  ex 
press  by  water  to  New-Orleans,  remonstrating  against  the  pro 
ceedings  of  the  intendant,  and  advising  their  discontinuance ; 
that,  although  he  has  no  control  over  the  intendant,  there  is  a 
very  great  probability  that  his  advice  will  be  attended  to ;  that, 
if  it  is  not,  the  minister  will  enforce  it  emphatically  upon  his 
own  responsibility,  and  that  our  government  also  sent  an  express 
by  land  charged  to  the  same  effect. 

10th.  That  it  is  the  prevalent  opinion  here,  that  it  is  essential 
to  the  prevention  of  future  interruption  of  our  western  com 
merce,  and  the  preservation  of  the  peace  of  the  Union,  that  the 
country  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Mississippi  and  east  of  that 
should  belong  to  us,  and  that  there  are  two  modes  of  accom 
plishing  this  object — purchase  and  force,  and  that  the  former 
ought  to  be  first  tried. 

llth.  Under  this  impression  the  president  has  this  day  nomi 
nated  R.  R.  Livingston  minister  plenipotentiary,  and  James 


APPENDIX.  311 

Monroe,  late  governor  of  Virginia,  minister  extraordinary  and 
plenipotentiary,  to  treat  with  the  First  Consul  conjointly  "  for 
the  purpose  of  enlarging  and  more  effectually  securing  our  rights 
and  interests  in  the  river  Mississippi  and  the  territories  east 
ward  of  it ;"  but  as  Spain  is  still  in  possession  of  the  country, 
the  like  powers,  in  the  same  capacity  and  for  the  same  objects, 
are  intrusted,  in  case  it  should  be  necessary  to  exercise  them,  to 
Mr.  Monroe,  in  conjunction  with  our  present  minister  at  Madrid. 
By  the  rules  of  the  Seriate,  these  nominations  cannot  be  con 
sidered  until  to-morrow.  They  will  undoubtedly  be  confirmed. 
The  Legislature  of  Maryland  have  passed  spirited  resolutions 
upon  the  subject  of  the  shutting  up  of  the  Mississippi,  which 
will  probably  be  followed  by  the  other  states.  You  will  at  once 
perceive  that  part  of  this  communication  is  intended  to  be  pri 
vate  ;  but  I  thought  it  best  to  give  you  a  view  of  the  whole 
ground,  so  that  you  may  judge  of  the  expediency  of  drawing  the 
attention  of  our  Legislature  to  this  subject,  as  our  citizens  are 
greatly  interested  in  it,  and  I  am  certain  that  this  measure  will 
be  very  acceptable  to  the  republican  interests  of  the  Union. 
You  have  no  doubt  witnessed  the  attempts  made  in  the  Morning 
Chronicle  and  federal  papers,  under  the  appearance  of  exclusive 
zeal  for  our  national  rights,  to  produce  a  war  immediately  with 
a  view  to  embarrass  our  financial  arrangements  and  overthrow 
the  administration.  A  suitable  mention  of  this  subject,  in  a 
general  view  of  the  affairs  of  the  nation,  will  therefore  havvc.  a 
great  tendency  to  confound  these  insidious  attempts. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  James  Madison. 

New-York,  July  1st,  1804. 
DEAI*  SIR  : 

I  have  the  honour  of  acknowledging  your  letter  of  the  25th 
of  June  and  its  enclosures.  I  should  have  answered  it  imme 
diately,  but  I  was  anxious  to  obtain  some  documents  which 
would  throw  further  light  on  the  subject  of  it,  and  these  I  could 
not  procure  until  yesterday. 


312  APPENDIX. 

The  attorney  of  the  district  will  in  a  few  days  inform  you  of 
the  proceedings  which  have  taken  place  on  account  of  the  viola 
tion  of  the  revenue  laws.  No  coercive  process  has  been  issued 
under  the  authority  of  the  state,  for  reasons  arising  from  a  de 
fect  of  jurisdiction,  which  I  shall  hereafter  explain  to  you. 

In  my  communication  of  the  19th,  I  gave  you  the  general  out 
lines  of  the  proceedings  in  relation  to  the  rule  of  twenty-four 
hours.  In  order  to  evince  the  frivolous  nature  of  Mr.  Merry's 
complaint  on  that  subject,  and  to  demonstrate  that  his  charge  of 
partiality  is  totally  groundless  and  unjustifiable,  I  shall  now  pre 
sent  to  you  a  more  detailed  statement  of  facts,  and  make  a  few 
remarks  which  naturally  arise  from  them. 

The  French  frigates  had  been  in  this  port  about  two  weeks, 
and  it  was  well  known  and  understood  that  they  intended  to 
proceed  without  delay  to  the  place  of  their  destination.  The 
British  vessels  of  war  arrived  here  on  the  16th  of  June,  and  on 
the  17th  (subsequent  to  the  aggressions,  but  previous  to  my 
knowledge  of  them)  I  addressed  the  letter  relative  to  the  usage 
of  twenty-four  hours  to  the  British  consul-general.  It  could  not 
have  been  supposed  that  the  British  vessels  intended,  for  any 
legitimate  object,  to  depart  from  the  port  almost  as  soon  as  they 
had  entered  it.  If  this  had  been  their  design,  they  certainly 
would  not  have  approached  so  near  to  the  city.  The  probable 
supposition  was,  that  information  had  been  sent  from  this  place 
to  Halifax  of  the  arrival  of  the  French  frigates  ;  that  the  British 
vessels  had  hastened  here  to  reconnoitre  them  ;  to  watch  their 
movements,  and  to  follow  them  out  of  our  jurisdiction  for  hostile 
purposes.  As  my  letter  to  Colonel  Barclay  was  in  consequence 
of  a  communication  from  General  Rey  recognising  the  rule, 
it  could  not  have  been  necessary  to  notify  the  latter  of  it,  espe 
cially  as  there  was  not  the  remotest  reason  to  suspect  that  the 
French  vessels  would  follow  the  British  ones  out  of  this  port. 

The  next  morning  I  received  an  official  account  of  the  out 
rages  committed  at  the  Quarantine  Ground.  In  the  afternoon  of 
that  day  I  received  Colonel  Barclay's  letter,  of  which  I  sent  you 
a  copy,  marked  No.  5.  By  referring  to  it,  you  will  find  that  it  is 


APPENDIX.  313 

extremely  disingenuous  and  evasive  It  does  not  appear  from 
it  that  he  had  communicated  my  request  to  the  British  com 
manders.  It  did  not  announce  any  views  or  intentions  of  theirs 
in  consequence  of  that  request.  It  did  not  take  the  ground  now 
assumed  by  Mr.  Merry.  Nor  did  it  stipulate  that  the  British 
vessels  should  not  pursue  the  French  ones  within  twenty-four 
hours  after  their  departure,  or  recognise  any  obligation  on  their 
part  to  comply  with  the  rule  in  any  sense  whatever.  On  the 
contrary,  it  appeared  from  it  that  the  intentions  of  the  British 
admiral  were  to  be  paramount  to  the  law  of  nations.  Nor  could 
it  well  escape  my  observation,  that  the  declared  object  of  the 
visit  of  the  British  vessels  was  not  the  real  one  ;  that  if  it  had 
been  the  delivery  of  despatches,  as  pretended,  it  could  have 
been  fully  effected  by  their  remaining  out  of  the  port,  and  send 
ing  a  boat  up  to  the  city  ;  that  it  was  not  reasonable  to  suppose 
two  vessels  of  war  would  be  sent  for  the  purpose  of  conveying 
communications  to  a  consular  agent ;  and  the  mention  of  taking 
directions  from  Mr.  Merry  on  the  subject  could  be  contem 
plated  in  no  other  light  than  as  an  implied  refusal  to  comply 
with  my  request  in  any  shape,  because,  in  all  probability,  his 
answer  could  not  arrive  in  season. 

Combining  Colonel  Barclay's  answer  with  the  considerations 
which  I  have  mentioned,  and  more  particularly  with  the  aggres 
sions  at  the  Quarantine  Ground,  I  had  no  doubt  but  that  the 
British  commander  would  proceed  in  his  career  of  atrocity,  and 
I  considered  it  my  duty  to  deprive  him  of  the  means  as  far  as 
lay  in  my  power.  Under  these  impressions,  I  wrote  the  letter 
heretofore  transmitted,  and  marked  No.  8,  to  the  wardens  of  the 
port.  It  is  predicated  upon,  and  distinctly  states  the  belief, 
"  that  the  Cambrian  and  Driver,  vessels  of  war  of  Great  Britain, 
will  endeavour  to  violate  the  laws  of  nations  by  sailing  from  this 
port  shortly  after  the  French  frigates,"  &c.  Although  it  does 
not  expressly  mention  the  outrages  at  the  Quarantine  Ground 
as  an  inducement  to  the  direction,  yet  the  words  having  rea 
son  to  believe  will  sufficiently  indicate  that  they  were  present  to 
my  inind  ;  and  I  can  truly  declare,  that  if  those  aggressions  had 


314  APPENDIX. 

not  been  committed,  the  order  would  not  have  been  issued.  I 
also  thought  it  expedient  to  obtain  from  Colonel  Barclay  a 
more  explicit  declaration  of  the  views  of  the  British  commander, 
and  I  accordingly  wrote  to  him  the  letter  marked  No.  6,  here 
tofore  forwarded.  If  the  British  commander  really  contempla 
ted  to  observe  the  rule,  by  not  pursuing  the  French  frigates  out 
of  our  jurisdiction,  Colonel  Barclay  would  certainly  have  de 
clared  that  intention  in  his  answer  to  which  I  refer  you.  It 
will  appear  from  it  that  he  was  satisfied  with  the  propriety  of 
my  request,  for  he  states  that  he  desired  Captain  Bradley  to 
comply  if  in  his  power :  and  I  had  no  reason  to  suppose  from 
it  that  the  British  vessels  intended  to  leave  the  port  prior  to  the 
French.  It  says,  indeed,  "  I  take  it  for  granted,  the  ships  are 
now  on  their  way  to  the  Hook."  As  the  Hook  is  that  part  of 
our  jurisdiction  nearest  to  the  ocean,  all  I  could  infer  from  this 
information  was,  that  the  British  vessels  have  repaired  there  in 
order  to  facilitate  their  egress  in  pursuit  of  the  French.  The 
letter  from  Captain  Bradley,  said  to  be  enveloped  in  Colonel 
Barclay's,  was  never  received  by  me.  Supposing  this,  at  the 
time,  to  be  a  mistake,  I  mentioned  it  to  him,  and  he  promised  to 
send  me  a  copy,  which  he  has  not  complied  with,  for  reasons 
best  known  to  himself. 

The  principal  ground  of  complaint  appears  to  be,  that  the 
British  intended  to  depart  from  this  port  immediately  ;  that  they 
were  entitled  to  depart,  if  they  could  gain  the  ocean  previous  to 
the  French ;  and  that  they  were  prevented  from  departing  by 
the  recall  of  the  pilots.  The  pilots  left  the  vessel  on  the  19th; 
on  the  next  day  they  were  permitted  to  rejoin  them,  which  they 
accordingly  did  ;  and  yet  the  Cambrian  and  Boston  have  not 
sailed,  but  continue  stationed  near  the  mouth  of  the  port, 
while  the  Driver  is  cruising  off  the  Hook.  The  allegation, 
then,  upon  which  this  pretended  grievance  is  founded,  is  com 
pletely  falsified.  The  affidavit  of  Rowland  R  Crocher,  No.  1, 
will  indicate  new  aggressions  committed  on  a  vessel  coming  in 
to  this  port  ;  and  that  of  Robert  Bennett,  No.  2,  will  show  that 
the  Boston  endeavoured  to  intercept  an  American  brig,  named 


APPENDIX.  315 

the  Pallas,  in  her  egress  from  this  port,  with  the  probable  design 
of  capturing  certain  distinguished  French  citizens  who  were 
supposed  to  have  taken  their  passage  in  her.  The  fact  is,  our 
port  is  completely  blockaded  against  the  admission  or  departure 
of  French  vessels.  There  can  be  no  doubt  but  the  British 
frigates  will  pursue  and  capture  all  French  vessels  leaving  the 
port,  without  any  regard  to  the  law  of  nations  or  our  neutral 
rights.  Instead,  therefore,  of  complaining  that  they  have  been 
deprived  of  pilots  for  two  days,  they  ought  to  be  thankful  for 
our  forbearance  in  allowing  them  any,  after  the  daring  outrages 
which  they  have  committed  and  continue  to  commit. 

On  the  26th  of  December  last,  an  application  was  made  to 
me  by  Richard  J.  Tucker,  at  the  instance  of  the  British  consul- 
general,  to  detain  in  this  port  the  French  armed  schooner 
L'Ocean,  wpon  account  of  the  intended  departure  of  two  British 
merchantmen  ;  and,  on  the  19th  of  January,  a  similar  application 
was  made  by  the  consul-general  in  behalf  of  another.  The 
papers  marked  from  No.  3  to  No.  8  inclusive,  contain  the  ap 
plications  and  the  subsequent  proceedings  ;  and  in  demonstra 
ting  that  a  similar  conduct  was  adopted  at  the  request  of  British 
agents,  and  in  favour  of  British  vessels  in  respect  to  the  rule  of 
twenty-four  hours,  as  has  been  pursued  in  the  case  now  com 
plained  of,  they  abundantly  refute  the  charge  of  impartiality. 
Any  measures  in  these  cases  to  enforce  the  rule,  were  rendered 
unnecessary  by  the  annunciation  of  a  determination  to  comply 
with  it. 

I  also  transmit  an  affidavit  of  John  White,  marked  No.  9, 
which  proves  that  the  captain  of  the  Cambrian  was  made  ac 
quainted  with  our  Quarantine  law,  and  that  he  knowingly  vio 
lated  it. 

Since  writing  the  above,  I  am  told  the  Boston  went  out  of 
port  yesterday,  and  probably  on  a  cruise  off  the  Hook. 


316  APPENDIX. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  Thomas  Willing. 

New- York,  August  4th,  1804. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

I  avail  myself  of  an  early  opportunity  since  my  return  to  this 
city,  of  acknowledging  the  communication  subscribed  by  you  in 
behalf  of  the  citizens  of  Philadelphia,  Southwark,  and  the  North 
ern  Liberties,  in  relation  to  the  melancholy  death  of  General 
Hamilton. 

The  unsullied  integrity,  transcendant  talents,  and  eminent 
services  of  this  great  man,  are  universally  acknowledged  and 
duly  appreciated  by  all  descriptions  of  persons  here  ;  and  al 
though  a  large  majority  of  the  citizens  of  this  place  are  decidedly 
attached  to  the  wise  and  patriotic  administration  which  so  hap 
pily  presides  over  the  affairs  of  the  Union,  and  were,  of  course, 
opposed  to  General  Hamilton  in  political  opinions,  yet  on  this 
occasion  we  all  cordially  unite  in  deploring  an  event  which  has 
deprived  our  country  of  one  of  the  most  distinguished  of  her 
citizens,-and  which,  although  at  all  times  a  public  misfortune, 
must  be  considered  peculiarly  so  at  the  present  crisis,  when  we 
reflect  on  his  zealous  and  honourable  attachment  to  the  union  of 
the  states,  and  consider  the  disorganizing  schemes  which,  there 
is  too  much  reason  to  apprehend,  are  in  agitation  to  destroy  this 
palladium  of  our  national  safety,  this  guarantee  of  our  national 
glory. 

The  virtuous  sensibility  manifested  by  the  citizens  of  Phila 
delphia,  Southwark,  and  the  Northern  Liberties  is  highly  hon 
ourable  to  them,  as  well  as  to  the  memory  of  the  deceased,  and 
has  made  a  deep  impression  upon  our  minds.  In  presenting 
you  and  them  the  warmest  acknowledgment  for  your  sincere 
and  heartfelt  condolence,  I  am  persuaded  that  I  faithfully  com 
municate  the  sense  of  my  fellow-citizens,  as  well  as  my  own 
upon  this  occasion. 

I  have  the  honour,  &c. 


APPENDIX.  317 


The  Trustees  of  the  Free  School  to  the  Vestry  of  Trinity 
Church. 

New- York,  May  10th,  1815. 
GENTLEMEN  : 

The  trustees  of  the  Free  School  Society  of  New- York  would 
do  injustice  to  their  feelings  were  they  not,  in  addition  to  their 
public  acknowledgment,  to  express  to  you,  in  a  more  direct  form, 
their  high  sense  of  your  liberality,  charity,  and  public  spirit,  in 
appropriating  the  valuable  grounds  in  Christopher,  Columbia, 
and  Hudson  streets,  for  the  purpose  of  dispensing  education  to 
the  poor  of  this  city. 

As  long  as  benevolence  shall  be  considered  a  virtue  and 
knowledge  a  blessing,  this  act  will  command  the  approbation  of 
all  good  men. 

I  am,  in  behalf  of  the  trustees, 

Very  respectfully,  your  most  obedient  servant. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  J.  Ellicott. 

Albany,  April  4th,  1816. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

Accompanying  this,  you  will  receive  an  interesting  map  rela 
tive  to  the  country  affected  by  the  proposed  canal.  It  is  to  be 
regretted  that  the  scale  is  too  small.  I  think  that  the  canal  is 
in  a  favourable  train,  and  I  hope  that  it  will  receive  the  sanction 
of  the  Legislature  in  a  few  days.  Your  suggestions  relative  to 
the  ways  and  means  are  interesting,  and  will,  I  have  no  doubt, 
be  adopted  either  on  this  or  a  future  occasion. 

Having,  ever  since  Governor has  unhinged  the  execu 
tive  power  by  shrinking  from  responsibility,  considered  the 
council  of  appointment  as  a  deleterious  and  disgraceful  body,  I 
have  paid  little  or  no  attention  to  their  proceedings,  and  I  had 
not  learned,  until  I  received  your  letter,  their  doings  relative  to 
Geneva.  These  proceedings  are  similar  (if  not  more  aggrava 
ted)  to  those  which  have  taken  place  in  other  respects. 


318  APPENDIX. 

The  truth  is,  that  the  whole  of  the  appointing  power  is  in  the 
hands  of  four  irresponsible  individuals,  whose  ephemeral  impor 
tance  is  succeeded  by  an  exit  into  obscurity  ;  and  the  state  id 
disgraced,  and  the  republican  party  divided  and  diminished,  to 
gratify  a  hunter  after  popularity,  who  had  not  the  nerve  to  do 
right,  but  whose  system  is  a  system  of  ever-varying  shifts  and 
petty  expedients,  without  an  intellect  sufficiently  enlarged  to 
comprehend  the  great  interests  of  the  state. 

The  present  council,  at  least  three  of  them,  are  totally  free 

from  the  influence  of  which  you  suspect  them  ;  of I  cannot 

speak  in  other  respects,  but  I  presume  he  is  also.  Those  I 
know  rely  very  much  on  the  advice  of . 

I  believe  that  there  are  strong  objections  to ,  not  only 

on  account  of  the  republican  principle  of  rotation,  but  upon  ac 
count  of  the  condition  of  the  republican  party,  which  is  divided, 
disgraced,  and  nearly  ruined  ;  but  our  affairs  are  brought  to  a 

crisis,  and  from  the  political  character  of ,  and  the  probable 

results  of  his  success,  I  shall  support  T ,  not  as  a  positive 

good,  but  as  a  less  evil. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  the  Governor  of  Pennsylvania. 

Albany,  September  20th,  1817. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

My  absence  from  this  place  has  prevented  an  earlier  reply  to 
your  excellency's  communication  of  the  3d  instant. 

The  measures  adopted  by  Pennsylvania  to  connect  the  waters 
of  the  Seneca  Lake  and  Tioga  River,  exhibit  an  intelligent,  en 
terprising,  and  patriotic  spirit;  and  the  benefits  which  will  arise 
from  the  execution  of  the  plan  will  be  experienced  in  the  crea 
tion  of  an  extensive  inland  trade,  and  in  the  consequent  encour 
agement  of  agriculture,  commerce,  and  manufactures.  The  ob 
vious  tendency  of  this  measure  is  to  facilitate  the  transportation 
of  commodities  from  this  to  the  neighbouring  states. 

From  a  full  persuasion  that  our  country  will  be  best  advanced 
by  multiplying  the  markets  for  her  productions,  and  by  an  inti- 


APPENDIX.  319 

mate  and  beneficial  connexion  between  the  different  members 
of  the  confederacy,  I  consider  it  a  sacred  duty  to  overlook  local 
considerations,  and  to  promote,  to  the  utmost  of  my  power,  every 
plan  which  may  be  subservient  to  these  important  objects ;  and 
I  cherish  with  confidence  the  opinion,  that  the  state  over  which 
you  preside  will,  under  the  influence  of  an  enlightened  public 
spirit,  co-operate  with  this  state  in  promoting  our  contemplated 
navigable  communications  between  the  Northern  and  Western 
lakes  and  the  Atlantic  Ocean. 

Under  this  impression  I  now  transmit  to  your  excellency  the 
official  reports  of  the  canal  commissioners,  and  the  acts  of  the 
Legislature  of  this  state  on  that  subject. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  Rufus  King. 

Albany,  December  13th,  1817. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

I  feel  greatly  obliged  by  your  letter  of  the  5th.  I  have  taken 
measures  to  ascertain  the  state  of  our  claims  vs.  the  United 
States ;  but  I  am  apprehensive  that  they  have  been  greatly,  if 
not  totally,  neglected.  As  soon  as  I  obtain  the  necessary  in 
formation,  it  is  probable  I  shall  write  to  you  and  your  colleague 
at  large  on  this  subject. 

The  canal  commissioners  have  recently  had  a  meeting  at  this 
place.  The  Northern  canal  will  be  contracted  for  in  toto  before 
spring,  and  some  work  has  been  already  done  on  it.  Sixty  miles 
of  the  Western  have  been  contracted  for,  to  be  finished  by  the 
first  of  December,  1818  ;  and  work  to  the  extent  of  twenty 
miles  has  been  already  effected,  and  all  these  arrangements  have 
been  made  within  the  estimates  of  the  commissioners. 

My  great  regard  for  the  president,  and  my  anxiety  to  extend 
our  navigable  communication,  induces  me  to  regret  exceedingly 
his  scruples  about  the  right  of  Congress  to  promote  internal  im 
provements  ;  and  I  perceive  a  total  interruption  of  the  interpo 
sition  of  the  national  government  in  favour  of  roads  and  canals. 
The  probability  is,  that  no  amendment  removing  the  difficulty 

B   B 


320  APPENDIX. 

will  be  sanctioned  by  the  states.  Some  will  oppose,  because 
they  believe  that  the  power  is  already  vested  in  Congress ;  and 
others  will  object,  because  they  believe  that  it  ought  not  to  be 
deposited  in  that  body.  After  swallowing  the  National  Bank 
and  the  Cumberland  Road,  &c.,  it  was  not  to  be  supposed  that 
Mr.  Madison  would  strain  at  canals ;  but  so  it  is  ;  and  the  gal 
lantry  of  his  successor,  in  protecting  him  with  his  Telarnonian 
shield,  is  more  to  be  admired  for  its  spirit  than  its  prudence. 
We  shall  go  on  without  any  expectations  of  extraneous  aid  ;  and 
in  the  course  of  ten  years,  I  hope,  if  Providence  spares  our  lives, 
to  have  the  pleasure  of  a  canal  voyage  with  you  from  Lake  Erie 
to  Albany. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  Thomas  Eddy. 

Albany,  December  23d,  1822. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

Mr.  S.  Burling  lately  solicited  me  to  recommend  the  intro 
duction  of  a  plan  for  laying  an  excise  on  spirituous  liquors, 
and  I  partly  promised  that  I  would  ;  but,  on  farther  reflection, 
I  consider  it  most  suitable  that  the  overture  should  emanate 
from  his  constituents,  and  with  this  view  I  now  write  to  you. 

In  some  well-written  essays  published  on  this  subject  in 
Walsh's  paper,  it  was  estimated  that  fifty  millions  of  gallons  of 
spirituous  liquors  are  annually  consumed  in  the  United  Stales, 
at  an  expense  of  thirty  millions  of  dollars,  and  with  the  sacrifice 
of  thirty  thousand  lives.  If  this  be  only  an  approximation  to 
the  truth,  what  a  field  for  reflection  does  it  present  to  the  mor 
alist  and  statesman. 

After  deducting  foreign  importations  of  spirits,  say  to  the 
amount  of  six  millions  of  gallons,  and  allowing  for  four  millions 
produced  from  foreign  molasses,  there  would  still  remain  forty 
millions  manufactured  from  our  own  materials.  Does  not  this 
astound  us  with  its  enormity  and  alarm,  as  with  its  terrific  as 
pect  1 

An  excise  of  one  shilling  a  gallon  would  produce  a  revenue 


APPENDIX.  32 1 

01  five  millions  a  year.  Double  the  duty,  and  you  will  raise  a 
fund  that  will  pay  off  the  national  debt,  and  line  and  intersect 
the  country  in  all  directions  with  canals  and  roads. 

Every  considerable  increase  of  the  price  of  an  article  tends  to 
check  its  consumption  ;  and  here  the  revenue  of  a  country 
would  be  auxiliary  to  its  morality — a  noble  union  in  the  eye  of 
a  great  statesman. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  Henry  Eagan. 

Albany,  October  1st,  1823. 
SIR: 

I  had  the  honour  of  receiving  your  letter  of  the  16th  ultimo, 
and,  greatly  respecting  the  honourable  feelings  which  have 
prompted  that  communication,  I  hasten  to  reply  to  it.  A  gen 
eral  answer  will,  I  presume,  embrace  the  material  points  on 
which  you  wish  to  be  satisfied. 

Your  duties  as  a  Knight  Templar  are  subordinate  to  the  du 
ties  which  you  owe  to  yourself,  your  family,  and  your  country, 
and  your  natural  and  social  rights  cannot  be  destroyed  by  ma 
sonic  communion  ;  you  have  a  right,  therefore,  to  withdraw 
from  the  encampment  of  Knights  Templar  whenever  you  may 
consider  it  necessary,  on  discharging  your  pecuniary  obligations 
to  the  institution ;  and  no  presiding  officer  has  any  right  to  in 
terrupt  you  in  the  exercise  of  this  right. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  Joseph  Kabine. 

Albany,  October  10th,  1823. 
SIR: 

I  have  received,  at  different  times,  all  the  transactions  of  the 
Horticultural  Society  of  London,  as  far  as  the  second  part  of 
the  fifth  volume  inclusive,  and  I  need  not  say  how  highly  grati 
fied  I  am  at  this  splendid  specimen  of  the  arts,  combined  with 
so  much  useful  information. 

I  have  also  received  your  zoological  appendix  to  Captain 
Franklin's  journey,  for  which  I  thank  you.  The  accurate  ana 


322  APPENDIX. 

important  information  which  it  contains  renders  it  an  acquisition 
to  natural  history. 

I  see  that  you  have  noticed  the  "  Columba  Migratoria ;"  as  this 
is  one  of  our  most  interesting  birds,  I  have  sent  by  Mr.  Doug 
lass  six  living  ones,  which  I  hope  will  reach  you  in  good  order 
I  have  enclosed  a  paper  which  contains  some  observations  on 
this  bird.  You  will  also  receive  specimens  of  preserved  birds 
for  your  collection. 

I  am  much  obliged  to  you  for  the  Nepaul  rice,  and  I  have 
made  such  a  distribution  of  it  as  I  hope  will  produce  good  re 
sults. 

I  have  afforded  Mr.  Douglass  all  the  facilities  in  my  power, 
by  letters  of  recommendation,  written  directions,  and  verbal  ad 
vice.  The  notice  of  the  Horticultural  Society  which  I  trans 
mit  by  this  conveyance,  was  written  by  me  with  a  view  to  pro 
pitiate  the  public  mind  in  favour  of  his  mission.  I  consider  your 
selection  a  judicious  one  :  he  unites  enthusiasm,  intelligence,  and 
persevering  activity. 

I  have  sent  by  him  a  box  of  minerals  for  your  cabinet.  Thuy 
were  collected  in  the  excavation  of  secondary  limestone,  about 
thirty  miles  from  Lake  Erie,  in  the  course  of  our  canal  opera 
tions.  I  have  not  inspected  the  box  ;  but,  if  they  are  put  up  ac 
cording  to  my  directions,  you  will  find  some  specimens  not  a 
little  interesting. 

You  will  also  receive  the  Memoirs  of  our  Board  of  Agricul 
ture,  in  two  volumes,  and  the  transactions  of  a  society  for  Use 
ful  Information,  in  three  volumes.  They  are  intended  for  the 
library  of  the  Horticultural  Society. 

Mr.  Douglass  will  deliver  a  box  containing  some  specimens 
of  fruit,  which,  if  they  reach  you  without  decay,  may  interest 
you  by  their  size,  if  not  by  their  flavour. 

The  deerskin  socks,  or  moccasins  as  they  are  called  by  the 
Indians,  were  manufactured  among  the  Cayugas,  and  they,  to 
gether  with  the  pamphlets  and  other  articles  in  the  same  box, 
are  intended  for  you,  with  the  exception  of  the  seeds  that  you 
may  consider  useful  for  the  society. 


APPENDIX.  323 

I  think  it  would  be  beneficial  for  your  institution  to  have  two 
additional  corresponding  members  in  this  country,  one  for  the 
North  and  one  for  the  South.  Jesse  Buel,  Esq.,  of  Albany,  sec 
retary  of  the  Board  of  Agriculture  of  New-York,  and  John  S. 
Skinner,  Esq.,  postmaster  of  Baltimore,  are  particularly  well 
qualified,  and  their  admission  as  corresponding  members  will,  I 
am  persuaded,  be  the  means  of  procuring  intelligence  and  con 
tributions  of  various  kinds  and  of  the  most  interesting  character. 

Mr.  Skinner  will  forward  a  bushel  of  the  famous  white  wheat 
of  Maryland,  and  several  volumes  of  the  American  Farmer,  pub 
lished  by  him,  and  Mr.  Buel  will  also  make  a  communication 
to  you. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  Micajah  S.  Williams. 

New- York,  November  18th,  1823. 
SIR: 

Your  communication  of  this  day  covers  a  very  wide  field  of 
inquiry,  and  embraces  many  important  considerations  ;  there 
fore  I  shall  endeavour  to  give  a  prompt,  explicit,  and,  I  hope, 
satisfactory  reply. 

The  projected  canal  between  Lake  Erie  and  the  Ohio  River, 
in  connexion  with  the  New- York  canals,  will  form  a  navigable 
communication  between  the  bay  of  New- York,  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico,  and  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence;  of  course  it  will  em 
brace  within  its  influence  the  greater  part  of  the  United  States 
and  of  the  Canadas.  The  advantages  of  a  canal  of  this  descrip 
tion  are  so  obvious,  so  striking,  so  numerous,  and  so  extensive, 
that  it  is  a  work  of  supererogation  to  bring  them  into  view. 
The  State  of  Ohio,  from  the  fertility  of  its  soil,  the  benignity  of 
its  climate,  and  its  geographical  position,  must  always  contain 
a  dense  population  ;  and  the  products  and  consumptions  of  its 
inhabitants  must  for  ever  form  a  lucrative  and  extensive  inland 
trade,  exciting  the  powers  of  productive  industry,  and  com 
municating  aliment  and  energy  to  external  commerce.  But 
when  we  consider  that  this  canal  will  open  a  way  into  the  great 


324  APPENDIX. 

rivers  that  fall  into  the  Mississippi ;  that  it  will  be  felt,  not  only 
in  the  immense  valley  of  that  river,  but  as  far  west  as  the  Rocky 
Mountains  and  the  borders  of  Mexico  ;  and  that  it  will  commu 
nicate  with  our  great  inland  seas  and  their  tributary  rivers,  with 
the  ocean  in  various  routes,  and  with  the  most  productive  re 
gions  of  America ;  there  can  be  no  question  respecting  the  bless 
ings  that  it  will  produce,  the  riches  that  it  will  create,  and  the 
energies  that  it  will  call  into  activity. 

It  must  be  obvious  that  there  can  be  no  insurmountable  phys 
ical  difficulties  to  the  opening  of  this  canal,  if  there  be  a  suffi 
ciency  of  water  on  the  summit  level ;  and  the  researches  that 
have  been  made  establish  an  abundant  supply  beyond  the  pos 
sibility  of  doubt.  The  only  questions  that  can  present  them 
selves  are  those  of  comparative  difficulty,  expense,  accommoda 
tion,  and  productiveness  in  the  designation  of  a  route  ;  and  this 
must  be  committed  to  the  decision  of  able  and  experienced  en 
gineers. 

I  should  suppose  that  the  maximum  cost  of  this  improvement 
would  exceed  $2, 500, 000.  In  five  years,  by  an  annual  ex 
penditure  of  $500,000,  this  work  may  be  advantageously  com 
pleted.  At  the  rate  of  six  per  cent.,  there  would  be  wanted 
$30,000  to  pay  the  first  year's  interest ;  the  second  year, 
$60,000  ;  the  third  year,  $90,000  ;  the  fourth  year,  $120,000  ; 
and  the  fifth  year,  $150,000.  The  only  financial  difficulty,  in  my 
opinion,  will  be  the  procurement  of  funds  for  the  payment  of 
the  interest. 

If  the  canal  be  commenced  on  the  lake  side,  every  step  of  its 
progress  will  open  a  most  extensive  navigation,  and  be  the" 
means  of  producing  revenue  ;  and,  at  the  termination  erf  the  five 
years,  the  profits  of  the  canal  will  not  only  defray  the  interest, 
but  produce  a  surplus  revenue  applicable  to  other  objects. 

Supposing  this  canal  to  be  200  miles  in  extent,  it  would  un 
doubtedly,  by  a  vigorous  effort,  be  finished  in  two  years  ;  but  it  is 
advisable  to  extend  the  period  to  five  years.  The  banks  will 
in  that  case  become  consolidated  before  much  use.  As  the  op 
eration  proceeds,  there  will  be  an  augmentation  of  skill  and  ac- 


APPENDIX.  325 

quisition  of  experience,  which  will  produce  economy  and  im 
proved  workmanship  ;  and  as  one  fifth  of  the  whole  sum  will 
in  this  case  be  only  required  for  each  year,  the  pecuniary  ad 
vances  that  are  essential  will  not  be  so  onerous  as  if  made 
within  a  shorter  period  ;  and  it  ought  to  be  recollected  that  the 
Erie  Canal  will  be  completed  next  year  ;  that  Ohio  can  avail  her 
self  of  the  aid  of  able  engineers  and  skilful  contractors ;  and  that 
an  undertaking  conducted  under  such  auspices  will  propitiate 
public  opinion,  and  secure  the  confidence  of  capitalists  who  are 
disposed  to  embark  their  funds  in  the  enterprise. 

I  shall  now  proceed  to  answer  the  following  interrogatory, 
"  Whether,  in  my  opinion,  funds  can,  say  in  two  years  from  this 
time,  be  obtained,  by  loans  at  different  periods,  as  may  be  re 
quired,  to  the  amount  of  $2,500,000,  on  the  credit  and  in  behalf 
of  the  State  of  Ohio,  at  an  interest  of  six  per  cent,  per  annum, 
by  giving  satisfactory  references  for  paying  the  interest  semi- 
aunually,  and  reimbursing  the  principal  at  the  termination  of 
thirty  years'!" 

I  have  no  hesitation  in  answering  affirmatively ;  I  have  no 
doubt  but  that  funds  to  the  extent  specified,  and  on  the  terms 
proposed,  may  be  procured.      The  requisite  loan  may  be  ob 
tained  either  in  Europe  or  in  this  country. 

It  will  be  recollected  that  there  is  a  vast  disposable  unem 
ployed  capital  in  Great  Britain.  The  finances  of  that  country 
are  in  a  state  of  improvement,  and  in  a  period  of  peace  she  now 
requires  no  loans.  The  greatest  borrower  is  consequently  out 
of  the  market.  The  moneyed  men  in  Europe  have  therefore 
accommodated  France,  Austria,  Russia,  and  some  of  the  gov 
ernments  in  South  America,  with  extensive  loans,  and  certainly 
none  of  them  afford  such  ample  security  for  reimbursement  as 
the  State  of  Ohio. 

The  moral  and  political  institutions  of  Ohio  are  all  propitious 
to  the  observance  of  good  faith ;  her  population  is  respectable 
in  number,  and  excelled  by  none  in  elevation  of  character  ;  her 
government  has  been  wisely  administered,  and  she  cherishes 
with  enthusiasm  that  spirit  of  liberty  and  independence  which  is 


326  APPENDIX. 

connected  with  the  best  interests  of  men  and  the  most  flourishing 
condition  of  states. 

Next  to  New- York,  Ohio  will  be  the  most  populous  state  in 
the  Union  ;  she  is  susceptible  of  a  population  of  12  millions  ; 
contains  39,000  square  miles,  and  has  every  facility  for  carrying 
the  pursuits  of  productive  industry  to  the  highest  pitch  of  im 
provement. 

She  therefore  presents  all  the  leading  inducements  for  the 
confidence  of  capitalists.  She  does  not  owe  a  cent,  and  can,  it 
is  hoped,  so  arrange  her  financial  affairs  as  to  meet  the  interest 
of  the  loans. 

At  the  termination  of  one  year  New- York  will  have  no  far 
ther  occasion  for  loans  ;  and  in  two  years  a  considerable  portion 
of  the  funded  debt  of  the  United  States  will  be  paid  off.  Capi 
talists  ean  then  find  no  better  place  of  investment  than  Ohio. 

If  two  millions  and  a  half  are  borrowed,  every  square  mile  in 
Ohio  will  be  only  answerable  for  sixty-four  dollars.  What  an 
ample  security  for  so  small  a  sum  !  and  it  will  be  recollected 
that,  when  this  canal  is  perfected,  it  will,  by  the  markets  which 
it  opens,  increase  the  value  of  lands  almost  immediately  fifty 
per  cent.,  and  diffuse  the  blessings  of  opulence  over  the  whole 
country. 

In  a  word,  sir,  all  that  is  necessary  to  complete  this  great  en 
terprise  is  the  will  to  direct  it.  Considering,  as  I  always  have, 
that  it  is  only  a  continuation  of  the  Erie  Canal ;  that  it  will  pro- 
mojfe  correspondent  advantages,  and  that  it  is  identified  with  the 
stability  of  our  government  and  the  prosperity  of  our  country,  I 
own  that  I  feel  a  more  than  common  solicitude  on  this  subject. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  William  D.  Foot. 

Albany,  December  4th,  1823. 
MY  DEAR  SIR  : 

Your  friendly  letter  of  the  17th  of  November  arrived  when  I 
was  on  a  visit  to  New- York,  irom  which  place  I  have  recently 
returned.  This  must  be  my  apology  for  so  protracted  a  reply. 


APPENDIX.  327 

When  at  that  place  I  have  learned  enough  to  convince  me 
that  your  suggestions  are  correct,  and  this  impression  is  cor 
roborated  from  so  many  respectable  quarters,  that  doubt  would 
be  affectation.  The  body  politic  is  indeed  about  to  relieve  itself 
from  the  unnatural  pressures  which  have  been  heaped  upon  it. 

As  to  the  future,  we  must  be  regulated  by  events,  keeping 
strictly  in  view  the  great  interests  of  our  country,  as  paramount 
to  all  earthly  considerations.  In  the  opinion  of  the  best-informed 
men  in  the  Union,  the  voice  of  this  state  will  have  a  preponder 
ating  effect.  Governor  Randolph,  Mr.  Jefferson's  enlightened 
and  patriotic  son-in-law,  told  me  so  lately,  and  without  reserve, 
in  New-York.  In  whose  favour  that  voice  shall  be  expressed 
is  a  subject  which  requires  great  deliberation.  If  we  cannot 
obtain  the  greatest  good,  we  must  endeavour  to  select  the  next, 
and,  at  all  events,  to  avoid  alarming  evils. 

The  events  which  are  in  a  train  of  development  will  have  an 
important  bearing,  not  only  on  the  well-being  of  America,  hut  on 
the  stability  of  free  government ;  and  yet  it  is  appalling  to  per 
ceive  such  struggles  for  power  without  reference  to  the  public 
interest.  We  must,  after  all,  rny  worthy  friend,  rely  upon  the 
general  diffusion  of  education  as  the  palladium  of  liberty.  The 
people  always  mean  right ;  and,  although  sometimes  misled,  yet 
they  will,  in  the  progress  of  time,  render  justice  to  themselves 
and  to  their  real  friends,  if  the  blessings  of  knowledge  are  freely 
and  fully  communicated. 

You  will  perceive  that  this  hasty  communication  is  intended 
for  your  private  perusal ;  I  shall  be  happy  to  be  favoured  with  a 
continuation  of  your  correspondence. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  Mahlon  Dickerson. 

Albany,  December  13th,  1823. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

I  thank  you  for  the  President's  Message,  which  is  justly  con 
sidered  an  able  document.  If  you  have  any  intelligence  with 
respect  to  the  Northern  Canal  of  New  Jersey,  it  will  give  me 


328  APPENDIX. 

great  pleasure  to  hear  from  you  respecting  it,  as  I  conceive  the. 
contemplated  measure  to  have  a  very  important  bearing  on  th& 
public  interests. 

When  I  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you  at  your  house,  \ 
promised,  in  reference  to  the  prosperity  of  your  fishponds,  t& 
communicate  to  you  a  mode  of  raising  trout  that  has  been  sue 
cessfully  adopted  in  Europe. 

About  forty  years  ago,  Mr.  Jacobi,  of  Hanover,  after  pre 
paring  a  trough  with  gravel  at  the  bottom,  through  which  spring 
water  was  made  to  flow,  took  a  female  trout,  and  pressed  and 
rubbed  its  belly  gently,  by  which  means  it  parted  very  readily 
with  its  spawn  without  any  injury,  in  a  basin  of  clear  water. 
He  then  took  a  male  trout,  and  rubbed  and  pressed  its  belly 
gently  in  the  same  manner,  to  let  the  melt  or  soft  roe  enter  the 
same  basin  where  the  female  roe  was,  and  then  stirred  them  to 
gether.  The  same  result  would  follow  if  the  roe  were  cut  out 
of  dead  fishes,  and  mixed  together  in  the  same  way.  He  then 
spread  the  mixed  spawn  in  the  trough,  and  let  in  the  water. 
A  more  detailed  account  of  this  process  may  be  found  in  the 
thirty-fourth  volume  of  Tilloch's  Philosophical  Magazine,  which 
work  you  either  have,  or  ought  to  have,  in  the  library  of  Con 
gress.  In  this  way  he  bred  annually  vast  quantities  of  salmon, 
trout,  and  other  fresh-water  fish. 

We  have  so  many  good  indigenous  fish,  that  it  has  not  been 
thought  worth  while  to  import  any  new  species.  The  common 
carp  was  introduced  into  England  in  1514  ;  its  favourite  resi 
dence  is  in  slow  and  stagnant  water  ;  it  unites  rapidity  of  growth 
with  longevity,  and  is  very  fruitful,  a  single  carp  having  pro 
duced  342,144  eggs ;  and  it  is  also  considered  excellent  food. 
It  is  a  hardy  fish,  and  may  be  imported  alive,  or  its  spawn  may 
be  put  up  and  transmitted  in  jars,  as  is  practised  in  similar  cases 
by  the  Chinese. 

The  Cyprinus  Auratus,  or  Gold-fish,  is  a  native  of  China  and 
Japan  ;  it  will  flourish  in  any  collection  of  pure  water,  and  its 
increase  is  prodigious.  It  is  said  to  be  good  for  the  table.  This 
fish  was  imported  into  Europe  from  China,  and  has  been  intro- 


APPENDIX.  329 

duced  into  this  country  by  that  circuitous  route.  I  have  them 
in  glass  vessels  in  my  house,  where  they  make  a  beautiful  ap 
pearance.  They  were  obtained  from  a  little  pond  on  the  island 
of  New- York,  which  is  literally  filled  with  them.  As  they  mul 
tiply  with  great  rapidity,  one  of  your  fishponds  ought  to  be 
stocked  with  them.  They  will  at  least  furnish  food  for  your 
trout,  besides  gratifying  the  sight  with  their  beautiful  appearance. 
If  you  have  a  desire  to  be  supplied,  call  on  Dr.  Hosack  when 
you  visit  New- York,  and  it  will  give  him  great  pleasure  to  see 
you  accommodated.  If  I  arn  successful  in  importing  the  com 
mon  carp  from  England,  you  shall  participate  in  the  benefits  of 
my  enterprise. 

De  Witt  Clinton  to  Jacob  Harvey. 

Albany,  March  20th,  1824. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

I  send  by  this  steamboat  O'Driscoll's  work  on  Ireland,  and 
Washington's  Sketch  of  the  United  States,  in  separate  enve 
lopes.  The  former  is  a  book  of  much  interest,  and  contains 
many  original  views  and  much  valuable  information.  He.  how 
ever,  too  evidently  strains  his  brains  to  shine  as  a  fine  writer, 
and  he  sometimes  tires  the  reader  by  uniformity,  and  palls  the 
appetite  by  high  seasoning.  A  traveller  is  more  fatigued  if  the 
road  is  level  or  straight,  than  if  it  be  waving  or  winding.  The 
Sermons  of  Blair  and  the  Poems  of  Darwin  have  been  received 
as  models  of  superior  writing,  but  they  soon  lose  their  hold  on 
the  mind  by  their  splendid  monotony.  O'Driscoll  has  fancy, 
pathos,  discrimination,  information,  a  great  command  of  lan 
guage,  and,  what  is  better,  an  entire  devotedness  to  his  much- 
injured  country.  Except  two  or  three  paradoxes,  I  see  nothing 
to  object  to  the  matter  of  his  book.  His  idea  that  the  manu 
facturing  greatness  of  England  is  owing  to  the  poor  laws,  is 
about  as  wise  as  the  doctrine  of  Malthus,  that  the  calamities  of 
Ireland  are  owing  to  potatoes. 

In  defiance  of  this  heretical  dogma  of  Malthus,  I  did  not  hesi 
tate  to  try  how  far  it  would  apply  to  the  comfort  of  individuals ; 


330  APPENDIX. 

and  I  availed  myself  of  the  opportunities  which  you  have  so 
kindly  afforded  me  for  a  full  experiment,  and  I  assure  you  that 
I  found  nothing  in  the  process  but  what  puts  the  hypothesis  of 
Malthus  to  the  blush.  Surely  what  is  beneficial  to  individuals 
must  be  so  to  communities  or  collections  of  individuals.  The 
salubrity  of  the  potato  is  demonstrated  in  the  beauty  of  your 
women,  the  strength  of  your  men  ;  and  as  population  depends 
on  subsistence,  even  according  to  the  speculations  of  Malthus, 
the  increasing  numbers  of  Ireland,  harassed  as  that  country  has 
been  by  tithes,  taxes,  oppression,  and  bad  government,  establish 
beyond  question  the  futility  of  his  theory. 

I  am,  upon  the  whole,  so  much  pleased  with  O'Driscoll,  that 
I  shall  esteem  it  as  a  continuation  of  your  kindness  if  you  will 
favour  me  with  an  opportunity  of  looking  at  his  newspapers. 


In  compliance  with  your  request,  and  in  accordance  with  my 
hereditary  predilections,  I  did  not  on  the  17th  forget  the  coun 
try  for  which  God  has  done  so  much  and  men  so  little,  nor  did 
I  omit  to  render  my  devoirs  to  the  saint,  and  to  pledge  the  health 
of  the  friend  who  has  so  kindly  reminded  me  of  the  occasion. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  John  Jacob  Astor. 

New -York,  December  2d,  1824. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

When  on  a  short  visit  to  this  place,  I  had  the  pleasure  of  re 
ceiving  from  your  son  your  letter  from  Geneva.  The  surprise 
which  your  silence  had  produced  was  removed  by  hearing  of  the 
accident  which  has  occurred  to  you,  and  of  which  your  com 
munication  gave  me  the  first  information. 

The  growth  of  this  city  exceeds  the  most  sanguine  anticipa 
tions.  You  will  scarcely  recognise  it  on  your  return ;  upward 
of  3000  houses  will  be  erected  this  year.  This  extraordinary 
prosperity  is  principally  imputable  to  the  great  canals,  all  of 
which  are  finished,  except  30  miles  of  the  Western  termination 
of  the  Erie  Canal,  and  which  will  be  completed  the  beginning 


APPENDIX.  331 

of  next  July.  The  revenue  from  tolls  this  year  will  be  325,000 
dollars,  and  every  succeeding  season  will  augment  its  amount. 
I  always  told  you  that,  if  I  were  proprietor  of  the  island  of  New- 
York,  I  would  at  once  construct  these  works  at  my  own  ex 
pense  ;  and  there  is  now  no  part  of  the  world  which  contains  a 
canal  of  such  extent  as  the  Western  one,  and  which  has  a  city 
that  forms  the  concentrating  point  of  such  immense  internal  and 
external  commerce  as  New- York. 

Our  political  excitements  will  not  be  terminated  until  the  ter 
mination  of  the  pending  presidential  election.  The  24  electoral 
colleges  met  yesterday  in  their  respective  states,  and  gave  in 
their  votes  :  the  whole  number  of  votes  is  261. 

The  probability  is,  that  Jackson  will  have  100  votes,  Adams 
80,  and  the  remainder  will  be  divided  between  Crawford  and 
Clay.  A  majority  of  all  the  votes,  that  is,  131,  is  necessary  to 
constitute  a  choice  by  the  electoral  college  ;  and  in  case  this 
aggregate  number  is  not  rendered,  the  election  is  transferred  to 
the  House  of  Representatives,  who  select  by  states  one  out  of 
the  three  highest  on  the  list  of  the  electoral  colleges.  Whether 
Crawford  or  Clay  will  be  the  third  person  is  doubtful,  but  it  is 
believed  that  it  will  be  the  former.  In  every  alternative,  the 
general  opinion  and  the  general  wish  is  in  favour  of  the  elec 
tion  of  Jackson. 

You  will  probably  see  in  the  gazettes  that  I  am  elected  gov 
ernor  by  the  greatest  majority  that  was  ever  given  in  this  state 
in  a  contested  election.  The  other  elections  have  been  of  a 
similar  character,  and  we  are  completely  rescued  from  the  late 
dominant  party.  If  Heaven  shall  spare  my  life,  I  will  endeavour 
to  put  this  state  on  a  footing  which  will  call  all  her  energies  into 
activity,  and  elevate  her  still  higher  in  the  scale  of  prosperity. 

Your  return  will  afford  the  highest  satisfaction  to  your  nu 
merous  friends,  and  to  none  more  than  to  yours  sinceiely. 


332  APPENDIX. 

De  Witt  Clinton  to  James  Renwick. 

Albany,  October  1st,  1825. 
DEAR  SIR: 

-  The  firing  of  heavy  cannon  along  the  line  of  the  Erie  Canal 
on  the  day  of  the  celebration  of  its  completion,  and  probably 
from  Albany  to  New- York,  may  afford  a  good  opportunity  for 
some  interesting  experiments  on  the  phenomena  of  sound  by  the 
use  of  accurate  chronometers  at  suitable  places.  The  distance 
from  Buffalo  to  Sandy  Hook,  by  way  of  the  canal,  is  rising  500 
miles.  I  am  aware  that  acoustics  or  the  philosophy  of  sound 
has  been  closely  attended  to,  but  there  is  constantly  unexplored 
ground  in  every  science,  and  valuable  gleanings  may  at  least  be 
elicited  from  the  most  improved  state  of  useful  knowledge. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  Parmenio  Adams. 

Albany,  December  21st,  1825. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

You  have  done  me  the  honour  to  ask  my  opinion  respecting 
the  most  advisable  constitutional  arrangement  for  the  promotion 
of  internal  improvements.  On  this  subject  I  never  had  a  doubt. 
As  the  national  government  has  all  the  effective  revenue  and 
funds  of  the  nation,  it  ought,  if  it  has  not,  to  be  invested  with  the 
power  of  distributing  a  due  portion  among  the  several  states  for 
the  establishment  of  canals,  &c.  The  rule  of  apportionment 
should  be  population,  or,  if  you  please,  representation.  There 
might  be  some  difficulty  in  making  all  the  requisite  provisions  on 
this  subject.  When  there  is  a  common  interest  of  several  states, 
and  the  intended  work  passes  only  through  one  state,"  then  the 
states  interested  ought  to  make  a  common  concern. 

For  these  reasons,  and  to  remove  all  doubts,  I  should  like  an 
amendment  to  the  Constitution,  investing  Congress  with  the 
power  of  appropriation  only  and  no  other,  and  with  this  express 
ion  the  first  part  of  Mr.  Bailey's  amendment  is  proper  in  sub 
stance  ;  but  the  second  section,  empowering  Congress  to  make 


APPENDIX.  333 

surveys  of  coasts,  rivers,  roads,  &c.,  is,  in  fact,  investing  them 
with  plenary  power  over  the  whole  subject,  and  extending  it  to 
other  points.  What  power  is  to  judge  of  urgent  purposes  but 
Congress ;  and  they  may  or  may  not  dispense  money  to  the  states 
as  they  please.  This  amendment,  if  adopted,  would  be  a  virtual 
annihilation  of  the  state  governments ;  and  I  am  astonished  at 
the  foolery  of  the  proposal.  The  author  might  have  considered 
it  a  profound  artifice,  but  its  insidious  and  Jesuitical  character  is 
obvious  ;  and,  although  the  head  of  the  ostrich  is  concealed,  yet 
the  whole  body  is  completely  exposed.  Under  the  pretext  of 
rendering  homage  to  the  state  governments,  it  gives  them  no 
thing,  and  the  general  government  everything. 


De  Witt  Clinton  to  William  D.  Ford. 

Albany,  April  14th,  1826. 
DEAR  SIR  : 

I  have  nominated  you  for  Master  in  Chancery.     I  should  have 
added  the  office  of  Examiner,  but  it  would  be  against  a  rule 

o 

which  I  have  adopted,  not  to  vest  these  two  offices  in  the  same 
person.  This  explanation  I  think  proper  to  make,  because  the 
calumnious  reports  which  appear  to  have  been  received  and 
cherished  in  your  village  may  also  have  infected  this  subject. 

I  received  a  letter  from of  a  very  impertinent  character, 

and  which  I  shall  consign  to  the  merited  contempt  of  silence, 
inquiring,  in  substance,  whether  I  had  changed  my  principles 
and  abandoned  my  friends  ;  from  this  and  other  sources  I  infer 
the  existence  of  slanders  of  various  kinds  in  your  quarter,  and 
the  whole  system  seems  to  originate  from  the  appointment  of  a 
notary.  This  office  has  never,  that  I  can  recollect,  been  refused 
by  me  on  political  grounds,  and  it  has  always  been  classed 
among  those  minor  offices  which  are  not  worthy  of  any  other 
notice  than  the  fitness  of  the  candidate.  The  applications  in 
such  cases  of  the  members  from  the  counties  where  the  officers 
are,  have  been  generally,  if  not  always,  acceded  to  on  the  ground 
of  unity,  and  with  a  view  to  destroy,  as  far  as  possible,  those 


334  APPENDIX. 

agitations  which  have  convulsed  and  disgraced  the  state.  As 
Mr.  T was  very  improperly  rejected  by  the  Senate  last  ses 
sion,  with  a  view,  as  I  was  told,  to  obtain  the  appointment  of 

notary  for  a  Mr.  ,  I  was  determined  not  to  nominate  the 

latter,  and  the  former  has  since  declined  a  renomination.  In 
the  interval  between  the  declining  of  Mr.  T and  the  re 
ceipt  of  the  recommendation  of  Mr.  B.,  a  recommendation  in 
favour  of  Mr.  W.,  by  the  Senator  and  Members  of  Assembly  of 
your  county,  was  handed  to  me,  and  I  acquiesced,  as  usual,  in  the 
arrangement ;  and  I  am  only  surprised  that  men  of  sense  should 
so  far  lose  their  intelligence  as  to  lay  stress  on  such  petty  in 
cidents. 

Mr.  B.  was  nominated  as  brigade  inspector.  The  brigadier 
general  is  opposed  to  it ;  and,  in  taking  this  step,  which  I  con 
sider  due  to  his  position  and  his  merits,  I  am  not  without  my 
apprehensions  that  he  may  be  rejected.  The  opposition,  you 
know,  have  a  majority  in  the  Senate,  and  a  conciliatory  system 
is  necessary  between  the  two  branches  of  the  appointing  power, 
in  order  to  promote  the  best  interests  of  our  country  ;  for  the 
best  laws  are  inefficient  without  good  officers  to  execute  them. 

My  course  of  policy  was  delineated  in  my  first  message. 
Chosen  by  the  people,  I  expressed  my  determination  to  be  their 
governor,  not  the  governor  of  a  party.  I  have  acted  on  this  sys 
tem  honourably,  conscientiously,  and  to  the  general  satisfaction. 
Not  a  murmur  of  disapprobation  has  been  expressed  against  the 
principle;  but,  when  it  is  carried  into  practice,  the  most  injurious 
imputations  are  applied ;  and,  with  some  of  the  blustering  pa 
triots  of  the  day,  moderation  is  apostacy  ;  and  an  attempt  to 
unite  the  people  in  favour  of  their  own  prosperity,  and  in  virtu 
ous  and  patriotic  principles,  is  denounced  as  a  profligate  coali 
tion  ;  and  the  jugglers  behind  the  distant  curtain,  who  blow  up 
the  coals  of  discord,  are  worshipped  by  the  few,  the  very  few 
puppets  of  their  ambition  :  but  they  that  sow  the  wind  will  prob 
ably  reap  the  whirlwind. 

THE    END. 


RETURN  TO  L    SK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

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